


Until We Find Our Way In The Dark And Out Of Harm

by ofwyrmsandguns



Category: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: (or more like brainwashed and crazy champions), Angst, Attempted Fratricide, Electricity, Evil, Evil Champions, Gen, Kidnapping, Torture, Whump, electric shock, royal coups
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-16
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-14 14:47:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 23,241
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28797117
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ofwyrmsandguns/pseuds/ofwyrmsandguns
Summary: One hundred years after the Great Calamity, the Champions are thought to be long dead, and the looming threat of Ganon's return is a distant thought to most of Hyrule. But the Champions aren't quite dead, and Ganon wasn't quite so much awaiting his return as busy on a side project. Now the Champions have returned, obeying a different King, and wanting revenge on the people that left them for dead.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 24





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> BTW the working title of this one was "Let's be an arsehole to the poor champions:)" and the document was saved as "Lets hurt them" so yeah hope you're in for some angst, hurt, whump, and lots and lots of not-very-nice-things to do.
> 
> Also... I don't really, like, have plans for Urbosa or Daruk other than a rough idea of what is going to happen with them so like, don't expect this story to go into their arcs for maybe another 3 years. My writing schedule is really fucked up, I rarely finish fics. Just know, you will at least get some really awful shit against Revali, Mipha, Sidon and Teba :)

The clash and clatter of silver hitting dragonbone filled the night air as the Zora fought back the invading lizalfos. The bridge to the dam was filled to the brim with them, and it was taking everything Prince Sidon’s troupe had to not fall back. To fall back meant letting the lizalfos into their home, and meant putting at risk everyone in the Domain.

King Dorephan lead the stand on Great Zora bridge, Captain Bazz guarded the the bridge to the Veiled Falls, and each one was swamped, outnumbered and trying hard to put off a retreat until the very last moment, to give the people of the Domain time to evacuate in case they all had to retreat. It was seeming more and more likely the Domain would fall.

“Prince Sidon!” Came the yell of a soldier. Sidon smacked away the nearest lizalfos before turning to acknowledge them. “A lynel has been seen approaching Inogo Bridge. We cannot leave the Domain by the south, the King has ordered a retreat to Veiled Falls once evacuation has completed.”

“Understood,” Sidon nodded, impaling an approaching Lizalfos and throwing it over the side of the bridge. A lynel coming this close to the Domain, and these numbers of Lizalfos were unnatural. Something was at work here, and it made Sidon’s blood boil. Retreating would mean losing the Domain to these monsters, but at this point, it was their only hope to prevent a blood bath. “Tell father we are ready when needed.”

The solider nodded, rushing back off towards the South of the Domain. The electric arrows had already hit too many of their soldiers; they couldn’t wait too much longer, or a retreat may not be possible at all.

A yell from the upper levels of Zora’s Domain reached Sidon’s ears, a yell of surprise from the archers, with a better view of the battle field. He hoped it was good news. He doubted it was.

“Zora approaching from the bridge! Watch your arrows!” Came the order. Had they left someone when they closed the lines to stop the approaching hoard? Regardless, Sidon couldn’t leave them surrounded by the lizalfos; one lone zora against this crowd would have no chance; he had to push forward.

“Watch my back,” he commanded, steadying his spear to aim for the lizalfos pivot point. The guard fell in behind him as he ran forward, knocking lizalfos left and right as he went. He saw flashes of red as he passed through them, getting ever nearer. Then, the crowd of lizalfos thinned unexpectedly, and he saw her clearly.

For the first time in one hundred years.

“Mipha?!” Sidon yelled, almost dropping his spear in shock. She was meant to be dead! But here she was, as perfect as the day she left, staring back at him, the lizalfos not daring get any closer to her and her spear.

He had to get her out of here before they tried anything. He wasn’t going to lose her again so quickly.

He smashed a lizalfos over the bridge once more, another scurrying out of the way before he could hit it. Mipha was approaching too, spear in hand but not fighting. Not that there were many lizalfos stood between them now, either retreating off the bridge or clambering down the sides as Mipha approached. A chill ran down Sidon’s spine; this wasn’t right. Something was seriously off here.

“Mipha, what’s-“ He started, stepping back from her, but she’d already closed the distance with her spear, pressed tight up against Sidon’s stomach, backing him up against one of the walls. Sidon looked through her eyes for some amount of mirth, any sign that this was a poor taste joke, but all he found was cold, calculating joy.

“Hello again, sweet brother.” Mipha greeted, her tone devoid of any of the happiness that should be there. This was Mipha, for Hylia’s sake! She’d never spoken to him like she-

Like she wanted him dead.

“On your knees, Prince Sidon.” Mipha demanded, pushing the spear tighter to his stomach until he slowly knealt down, then repositioned the spear at his neck. Frozen in shock, the warriors had halted fighting, the lizalfos having cleared to let them have a good view. “And drop your spear, we wouldn’t want an… accident, with that, would we?”

Sidon dropped his spear with a clatter, a lizalfos grabbing it and throwing it off the bridge, far from Sidon’s grasp. Mipha smiled, that same smile she’d always had, but now it spoke of danger. Blood was rushing through Sidon’s ears too loud to think. What was happening?

“Well? What are you standing around for?” Mipha demanded of the warriors watching in horror. “Send for my father immediately.”

It was only then that Sidon realised the sounds of battle still ongoing, the rest of Zora’s Domain still trying to win the battle, while he’d so foolishly walked into a trap. If his father saw this…

The spear pushed harder against Sidon’s throat. “Stay still. I don’t want to hurt you… yet.” Mipha warned. Warning horns played out around them, Sidon not daring to turn and look what they marked, but the quieting of battle sent ice spikes through him, shortly followed by the loud, rapid footsteps of the King.

“Mipha? Is that really you?” Came King Dorephan’s voice. Sidon tried to turn to look at him as he stepped nearer, but the sharp pain of the spear digging into his neck stopped him, as well as the King.

“Stay right there,” Mipha commanded, “Or the Domain will truly only have one heir this time.”

“What is the meaning of this? Let him go at once!” King Dorephan ordered.

“No. I want what was taken from me. I want what’s rightfully mine.” Mipha hissed.

“What are you talking about? Mipha, we’ve waited so long for your return, there was no need to do this,” King Dorephan pleaded, “Please, just drop the spear, so I can welcome you home properly.”

His voice sounded like his heart was breaking; Sidon closed his eyes, but Mipha didn’t relent.

“That’s not what I meant. Lord Ganondorf has plans for Zora’s Domain, and you don’t feature in them.” Mipha explained. He could reach his sword from here, surely, but could he unsheathe it before she saw?

“Lord Ganon- This is outrageous; Mipha stop this nonsense at once. You would not obey any forces of Ganondorf.”

“It’s been so long, father. I’ve been gone longer than I was ever here, who are you to say who I obey?” Mipha asked.

“Then you are not Mipha. She would not do this.” King Dorephan insisted, but Sidon could hear his resolve slipping.

“You do not believe that,” Mipha cooed softly, her eyes still trained on Sidon. If she would just look away for a moment… “Even if I was a copy, you would know in your heart, wouldn’t you, dear father?” Mipha asked, turning to face King Dorephan, “You would be able to spot me from a common copy.”

That was all Sidon needed, drawing his sword and pressing the tip against Mipha’s stomach. With the spear still in his throat, he couldn’t move to free himself, but the spear wasn’t long enough to put Mipha out of his reach. Her eyes widened for a second, before she started to laugh.

“Oh, stupid little Sidon. You think you can outsmart me?” Mipha asked, a flash of yellow from over her shoulder catching Sidon off guard, not registering what it was until it hit him, the prolonged jolt of pain causing him to drop the sword with a yell, his arms no longer answering his instructions as the lightning surged through his body. The spear was back at his throat by the time the jolts had stopped.

“Stop this!” Dorephan pleaded, dropping to his knees.

“I’m taking Zora’s Domain.” Mipha stated matter-of-factly, “and I can take it peacefully, or by force. Surrender, King Dorephan, or continue to fight. It matters not, you won’t win either way.” Lynel hooves hitting the luminous stone of the Domain could be heard over the screams of the crowd. They hadn’t evacuated yet, all the civilians were in danger… “The only difference is, whether Sidon will live to see the sunset,” Mipha pushed the spear in again, drawing blood as the warriors stepped forward in horror “No closer! Whether Sidon will live to see the sunset, or if you will have to bury him. Your choice.”

The lightning arrow had sapped too much of Sidon’s strength to try again to save himself, the Domain was surrounded by Mipha’s monsters, and the people of the Domain were the bargaining chips. It was an impossible choice to make, and yet…

“Very well, Mipha. I surrender. The Domain is yours.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Revali has finally returned to Vah Medoh to pilot it once more. Unfortunately for Rito Village, he hasn't come back to be their champion once more.

To be flying again felt so good. Too long had he been grounded, too long had the skies been out of his reach. No more.

“You feel the same too, right Medoh?” Revali asked, strolling across the back of the divine beast, the wind whistling through his feathers like a cold stream. And snow too… who would’ve though he would ever miss snow. But now, stood on Medoh once more, watching out over Hebra, he realised just how homesick he had been. “One hundred years is simply too long.”

Medoh made its way slowly back above Rito village, its presence missing since its pilot disappeared. Far below, the rito would be looking up in confusion and amazement, their brilliant champion back once more. He couldn’t wait to announce his return, oh the look on their faces…

“You know, why should we wait?” Revali asked, “Let’s show them our power right now.”

The rito were flying too close, curious about the return of Vah Medoh. Revali stepped towards the edge, peering down at his old home. Well, they hadn’t erected any statues of him anyway, not like Mipha or Daruk.

Someone was flying far too close for comfort. It was time to act. But boy, was he rusty on some of these controls.

“Now!” Revali yelled, the cannons on Medoh firing down towards the village below, followed by screams. Revali closed his eyes, walked back to the centre of Medoh, aiming next for the fliers coming near. They simply didn’t understand, it was, after all, for the greater good.

What was a little destruction worth, anyway?

////////////////

“If the aim of archery was to miss, Harth, you’d be best in the village,” Teba joked as Harth landed back on the flying range landing. It was a warm day today, or at least, as warm as Hebra would get, an they’d decided to train together for the first time in a while, taking it in turns to show off their skills. The cooking pot hadn’t been lit, so the range was dark, perfect for an extra challenge.

“I missed once, Teba,” Harth corrected him, “I’m only a little out of practice.”

“That’s the trouble with taking the soft life of a fletcher,” Teba continued, standing up from his spot at the opening to the hut to stand closer to Harth, picking up his bow as he went, ready for his turn.

“Well, we can’t all practice every waking hour of the day. Some of us need to actually work to keep the village running,” Harth teased back, gently shoving Teba. A distant explosion shut them both up, turning to face where it had come from.

“Someone having a little too much fun?” Teba asked, pushing past Harth to get to the edge of the landing. He stepped off, letting the updraft lift him up to see what was going on, the chilled air districting him from the chills running down his spine. A tense few seconds of lift was followed by an unbelievable sight.

Vah Medoh, flying above Rito Village. Just as Harth joined him, the cannons on Medoh’s back burst to life, striking the village from above, the panicked rito within flying off all sides in a rush to get out of danger.

Without a word, Teba rushed forward, bow tight in his talons, ready to fight for the village once more. Harth followed close behind, Teba’s strong windbeats allowing him to keep up with the much faster rito. As they neared, the screaming of the villagers hit their ears, the panicked shouting as people tried to avoid the lasers firing down from above, as families raced to find each other and get to safety.

Teba had to find Saki and Tulin, and fast. Joining the warriors could wait a minute more.

Landing fast on Revali’s landing and breaking into a run, Teba headed towards his roost, but neither Saki nor Tulin were to be seen. With any hope they’d already left; a quick check showed Kaneli next door was nowhere to be seen either. A yell of anger behind him had Teba whirling round, only to see Harth racing after what looked like a flying moblin skull. A beat of confusion passed until Teba heard the screaming accompanying the yell, seeing the pale pink feather held between the moblin’s teeth.

The beast had taken Molli. He needed to find Tulin quickly.

He exited Kaneli’s roost, only to see Saki rushing up towards him, the look of terror on her face making his heart sink. Her beak moved, but the words didn’t reach him, as he searched the skies for the other moblin skull, soaring towards Medoh, too far away to see the feather colour, but he knew what had been taken.

He grabbed Saki as he passed, rushing towards the landing once more. “Get to safety, I’ll go after him.” He instructed, his eyes not leaving the moblin skull getting ever nearer to Vah Medoh. With a running start off the landing, straight into the updrafts surrounding the village, and powered more with his own wings, Teba raced after it, gaining distance quickly.

And quickly finding himself in the firing line too.

Lights like guardian lasers barely missed Teba’s right wing, would’ve hit had he not rolled in time, another one barely missing left wing due to a downbeat. Teba was gaining fast, but not fast enough. The lasers were slowing him down, and he dreaded to think what would happen if Tulin reached Vah Medoh…

He caught up with Harth, as other warriors lost height, driven by injury or fear of it, deterred from continuing their approach. But the moblin skull holding Molli shot away faster than before as Harth was nearly close enough to reach it, a screech of frustration sounding from him.

“Dad?!” Came Tulin’s horrified screams as another laser barely missed both the skull and Teba, but nothing would deter him now.

“I’m coming Tulin, hang in there!” Teba yelled back. They were just below Vah Medoh now, within distance of the lower decks, but the skulls seemed to want to approach from above. Fine, if that’s how they wanted to play…

He breached the edge of Vah Medoh, just out of reach of the skull, just out of reach of Tulin. It was headed towards the beasts tail end, to dive deeper into the divine beast, but the up here all the cannons were within range of him; he couldn’t afford to fly straight at the tail if he didn’t want to be shot, but that would mean losing track of Tulin as he tried to weave them all away. An easy choice, if he just didn’t think about it.

He darted towards the tail, barely skimming over the grass covered back of Medoh, not noticing he wasn’t alone up here until something cold scraped his leg as he flew past. The beeping of the cannons told him he had to move fast, so he shot up just in time for the lasers to miss, spotting what it was that he had touched.

Sheikah technology, but not built into Vah Medoh. Instead it rested at the end of a wing, a navy wing, and on the end of that wing was a young rito, highlighted in bright white striking against the sea of navy blue. The pieces fell into place in Teba’s mind.

“Master Revali?!” He yelled, but Revali didn’t turn to face him. Instead, he pointed the sheikah technology to the far side of Vah Medoh, where Harth was just breaching. Pointing it at Harth. A smile twitched the beak. “HARTH, NO!”

The laser burst from the wing tip, striking Harth in such a dazzling display of light that Teba couldn’t figure out where it had hit. For a moment that seemed to stretch on forever, Harth lost his rhythm, and it almost seemed like he would land on Vah Medoh, but the beast rolled, and Harth disappeared over the edge.

“NO!” Teba yelled again. He barely had time to think, to decide between saving Harth and Tulin, but with each second he waited Harth fell further from the sky, and the lasers once again aimed at Teba. With a scream of frustration, Teba dived off over the edge of Vah Medoh, the laser fire from the cannons and the sheikah weapons barely missing him once more.

Wind lashed Teba’s eyes as he pulled in his wings, diving head first through the air after Harth, the blow seeming to have knocked him out as he fell down to the cliffs below, not even trying to slow his decent. Teba dropped his bow from his talons, urging for every split second of speed he could muster to reach his friend before it was too late.

The cliffs were too close for comfort, the wreckage of Rito Village beneath them coming much too quickly, the other warriors either not realising what had happened or too scared to get any closer to the Divine Beast. Just a bit closer, just a bit… he passed Harth…

Quick as a flash Teba grabbed Harth’s armor in his talons, flapping out his wings to slow both of their decents, the weight of Harth threatening to drag them both to a quick demise. Grabbing Harth as tight as he could, Teba tried to make it for the cliff edge where the stables stood, but he was losing altitude too quickly. The islands then; he just had to hope they hadn’t blown up the bridges yet.

He was in luck. But the landing was harsh, too fast, Harth hitting the grass below like a tonne weight, Teba toppling down after him. Yet Teba jumped back to his feet in an instant, hoisting Harth up, trying to carry him towards the stables where someone could help him. He had to go back for Tulin.

The bridge was still standing, and some of the evacuated rito saw Teba struggling with Harth and rushed forward to help, getting Harth to the other side and finally out of range of Vah Medoh. It seemed like the whole village had congregated here, crying children, terrified spouses, and warriors powerless to stop the attack on their village. Teba scanned the crowd until he saw Saki, saw his own pain reflected in her eyes.

Harth was in good hands now. He handed Harth over to one of the other warriors and headed back to the edge of the cliff.

“Stop him!” Came Kaneli’s order as Teba broke into a run, but he wasn’t quick enough. Hands grabbed him and pulled him back from the edge.

“Let go of me! Tulin’s still up there!” Teba yelled, trying to wrestle out of their grips. But he was outnumbered, being pulled back toward the stable. “Let go! I have to save him!”

“Teba, stop! You can’t take on Vah Medoh on your own.” Kaneli ordered.

“Not with that attitude I can’t. Let me go!” Teba yelled again, kicking at the warrior on his left. They took the opportunity to unbalance him, dropping him to the ground in a pile, keeping him from getting up. “Damn you Kaneli!”

“Be reasonable. You can’t do this on your own, and we can’t spare the warriors to fight Vah Medoh right now.” Kaneli insisted, standing over Teba still struggling on the floor.

“Teba, please.” This time it was Saki, her voice suddenly so close to him. He stopped struggling, worrying about hitting her as he fought off the warriors. “Don’t put yourself in danger like this, I can’t lose you both.”

Her voice broke as she buried herself in his feathers, the warriors finally giving him enough slack to sit up and embrace her. The entire village was staring at them now, but what did he care? He looked back up to where Vah Medoh circled, impossibly high above the ruined village, thought about how scared Tulin and Molli must be up there.

“You said Vah Medoh was meant to protect us, Kaneli! What was that?” Demanded one of the warriors. Kaneli himself looked just as lost as the rest of them, and Teba suddenly felt a little guilty for yelling at him. Not enough to not consider going after Tulin anyway as soon as everyone looked away.

“It was. I honestly haven’t the faintest idea why this happened…” Kaneli muttered.

“It was Revali,” Teba spat, all eyes turning to him once more as he pointed up to Vah Medoh. “He shot Harth himself, as we flew over the top of Medoh.”

“Master Revali? But, he’s been dead over 100 years. How would he manage that?” Someone in the crowd asked.

“More importantly, why would he? It seems rather out of character.” Kaneli asked.

“I don’t know. Frankly, I don’t care.” Teba muttered.

“Are you sure it was him? Maybe you were mistaken?” Kaneli asked.

“And how many young, navy blue rito do you know who can pilot Vah Medoh?” Teba asked, “Trust me, it was him.”

“That… is worrying. A rebellious divine beast is one thing, but to have our Champion fight us…” Kaneli looked back up at Medoh, who seemed to be watching them all in turn. “We’re not out of range of Medoh here. We must move.”

“Move? Where?” Amali asked, trying to comfort all her daughters. Kass had been gone a few weeks now; when he found out what had happened to his home, he was going to freak out, especially if he didn’t know where his wife and children were. No doubt Amali was worries about that too.

“Where might be less important right now than doing it soon, and safely.” Kaneli mused. “I wouldn’t want to leave our home unguarded, but neither must we move without warriors. I propose any warrior with a young family should help us move to new ground, for the time being, at least.”

“And the rest of us stay behind to watch Vah Medoh?” Asked one of the younger warriors. Kaneli nodded, stroking his chin feathers.

“Stopping Medoh might not be feasible for some time, but… we have to keep an eye on it, in case an opportunity arises.” Kaneli stated. “We should prepare to move soon.”

The warriors staying behind, too young to be married or old enough to have adult children, congregated closer to the stable. Teba stood to join them, only to be grabbed and turned around by Kaneli.

“Don’t make me repeat myself Teba.”

“Tulin’s up there, Kaneli. Alone, scared, and I’m going to rescue him.” Teba insisted, trying to shake off Kaneli’s wing.

“You know what would be worse than his father taking more time to come up with a sensible plan of attack, Teba?” Kaneli asked, almost dragging Teba along the floor as Saki followed alongside, still holding Teba’s hand, “Watching his father get shot out of the sky and killed trying to save him. I’m not stopping you to be cruel to either of you. I’m stopping you because I know you’ll come up with a better plan if you stop and think for once. I’ve known you since you were a chick, and contrary to what you think, you do not come up with your best ideas mid-battle.”

Teba threw Kaneli’s hand off his shoulder, he didn’t need patronising now, he never needed patronising. But they’d finally approached Harth, still out cold, being seen to by the village healers. His wing had been hit, the feathers singed off and the skin beneath flush red and crisped black, blistering already. Teba couldn’t hide his cringe; Harth was damn lucky not to lose that wing after an injury like that, luckier still that Teba had caught him in time at all.

If he attacked Medoh alone, there was little chance he’d be as lucky. The thought of Tulin seeing him plummet as he’d seen Harth sunk Teba’s stomach. He hated to admit it, but Kaneli was right. For once, the daft old bird was right.

“Damnit…” Teba cursed, raising his free wing to his face as Saki clutched him tighter. Tulin hadn’t even spent a night away from them before, and now this… Teba wouldn’t be able to sleep not knowing if Tulin was okay, and they still had to travel to find a new home. Not to mention his legs were already aching from catching Harth at that speed. He really couldn’t help at all… “Damnit all…”


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sidon wakes up, trapped in Vah Ruta by Mipha, and entirely at her mercy too...

When he awoke, it was cold, and wet beneath him too. It felt like stone, sanded down to be smooth, sapping heat away. Sidon moved to rub at his eyes, but his hand was held away by rattling metal chains. Opening his eyes, he saw the vast room he was in filled with Sheikah architecture, the floor coated in a thin layer of water. _Was this Vah Ruta?_

Light poured into the beast from a sunrise as Sidon tried to recollect how he had gotten here. Last thing he remembered, his father was surrendering Zora’s Domain to Mipha; he supposed he must have passed out not long after. His body ached something awful from that electric arrow one of the lizalfos had shot at him. At Mipha’s command…

 _Oh Mipha_ , he thought sadly, _what happened to you?_

Pulling on the chains proved them too sturdy to break, but even if he did manage it, the doorway to the room was sealed with bars. He might be able to lift them, but his arms were still feeling that fuzzy numbness that came from the shock arrows. All he could do was try to make himself more comfortable for now, stretching out as much as he could from the dumped pile he’d been left in.

Where his father was, well, that was another matter entirely. He couldn’t see him in the room (and he was very hard to miss), so all Sidon could do was hope that Mipha hadn’t- no, she wouldn’t. King Dorephan was safe, just somewhere out of Sidon’s reach right now. No matter what, it was still Mipha, and she wouldn’t hurt someone without a good reason, he was certain.

The sun rose through the sky outside of Ruta, glistening across the wet floors and warming up the room at least. Sidon found himself slowly nodding off, the warmth of the room and the aching in his muscles lulling him to sleep…

The sounds of footsteps through the water woke him up again, some hours later. The sun was high in the sky now, the ankle deep water caressing around Sidon as he watched the bars to the room open up. No-one talked outside of it, all he could do was hold his breath and wait to see what would happen.

Like out of so many of his dreams over the past century, Mipha walked into the room as if she’d never left, but the look on her face was not as he’d always pictured. There were no soft smiles, no tears of reunion, not even the exasperated look she would give him when he’d ran off into trouble again. Instead she just looked disinterested, as if coming back home after one hundred years of being presumed dead was an everyday occurrence. The jewellery she wore looked unusual; it wasn’t Zora craftmanship, he’d almost say it looked more like a bastardization of Gerudo jewellery. She was accompanied by the yellow lizalfos again, their sparking horns marking Sidon shift in discomfort.

“Did you sleep well?” She asked, her tone giving way how little she cared for the answer. A thousand questions swirled around Sidon’s head, but he wasn’t exactly the one in control here. Staying polite and on her good side, as he’d always been instructed to do on the rare chance of this exact situation, seemed to be the best course of action.

“As well as can be expected,” Sidon replied. He moved to stand up, but Mipha’s narrowing eyes stayed him.

“I shall accept that.”

“Might I ask a question?” Sidon asked. Mipha continued to stare at him, but made no effort to silence him, “Are we in Vah Ruta right now? I would quite like to get my bearings.”

“Yes, we are. This is the control room to Vah Ruta, but don’t get any ideas. You cannot control Vah Ruta; only a champion can,” Mipha explained, “And you are not a champion.”

There was venom in those last words; he had to backpedal before he upset her. This really wasn’t how he has dreamed his first conversation after being reunited Mipha to go, and it was taking every thing he had to not ask her why. “Of course not. Is the Domain okay? I imagine last nights events has people a little stirred up.”

“They’re fine,” Mipha snapped, “I am more than capable of being Queen, you know.”

“My apologies, I didn’t mean to suggest you weren’t,” Sidon added quickly, unsure of what nerve he’d hit there, “But between the fighting and the attempted evacuation, it was quite an eventful day yesterday. I was only asking-“

“Well, don’t. Lord Ganondorf entrusted the care of the Domain to me, he knows good leadership when he sees it. You couldn’t compare,” Mipha taunted. There was that name again, Ganondorf. He was sure he’d heard it in father’s stories somewhere…

“Forgive me, dear sister, but who-“

“Don’t you ‘dear sister’ me, Sidon. Don’t start pretending you care now,” Mipha hissed, stepping up to Sidon.

“What? Mipha, I don’t understand-“ Sidon started, cut off as Mipha grabbed him under the chin, glaring into his eyes. “What is it that I’ve done?”

“Playing stupid, are we?” Mipha asked, letting go of Sidon’s chin, “Hoping I don’t know what has really been going on while I was away?” Mipha’s tone had levelled out again, but to her normal dignified tone. But it didn’t make any sense, all that had been happening was he was trained to take over as King because the crown princess was presumed dead, and the endless mourning for her too. Nothing out of the ordinary for a monarchy.

“I really don’t understand,” Sidon repeated. “If there is something I’ve done, tell me so I can apologise-“

Mipha’s hand smacked down hard against his cheek, the shock of her doing it hurting more than the action itself. When he looked back at her, she’d turned away again.

“Did you really think I would not notice how little you all cared that I was gone?” Mipha asked quietly, “How much happier everyone was with you as heir apparent?”

Now that was just plain untrue. “That’s wrong, no-one ever-“

The strike by the lizalfos seemed to come out of nowhere; one minute he was speaking, and the next, every muscle in his body spasmed widly as the electric blow ran rampant through him, his breath catching in his lungs before he fell to the floor, trying desperately to gasp for the air he’d missed, the body-wide ache returning once more.

“Lord Ganondorf told me what was happening; I refused to believe it at first, but-“

“Then he’s a liar!” Sidon yelled, pushing himself up from the floor. How could she believe… “Everyone loves you Mipha, I love you-“

The next strike hit him in the ribs, spreading through all his scales as the flesh beneath them boiled as he tried to shout out in shock, but no noise came. Any attempt to pull himself away from the shocks met in failure as his body refused to cooperate, until the shocks stopped once more, his flesh still with a lingering burning feeling, his skin buzzing still as his fingers shook, his breathing feeling ragged.

“Do not speak out of turn in front of the Queen,” Mipha scolded, as if shocking anyone who would was standard procedure in Zora’s Domain. Sidon carefully shifted back to sit upright, not daring to look Mipha in the eyes, fearing what he would see there. Instead he focused on the water lapping around them, noticing Mipha was stood on wooden blocks to keep herself out of the water, and out of the way of the electric shocks.

“How easy it is, when your life hangs in the balance, to say that you care. But proof lies in our actions, and I know what it is that I saw,” Mipha explained as Sidon tried to steady his breathing, and think of the best way to get out of this situation. Agreeing with Mipha might work, or it might just get him killed faster. Not to mention further her belief that they hadn’t mourned her…

“Did you see the statue?” Sidon asked, cringing at the weakness in his own voice. “Is it not to your liking, my Queen?” The last two words stuck in his throat; one hundred years ago he was too young to understand what it would mean for Mipha to be Queen, and once he was old enough to grasp it, he was heir apparent. To use it like this, it felt like accepting their own defeat.

“Performative. I am sure you did miss the healer who saved countless lives, but you never truly missed me. And now I can show you all what a mistake that was.”

“I did miss you, terribly, and every day,” Sidon whimpered, “Had I known you were still alive, I would have moved all of Hyrule to reach you.”

“And yet, I was here all this time,” Mipha’s tone was unreadable, making Sidon tense, “and no-one thought to come check.”

“No-one could approach Vah Ruta. Calamity Ganon’s malice had sealed it off-“

“LIAR!”

The flash of yellow warned Sidon before it hit, the shocks more powerful than before, his body thrusting fruitlessly to get away, his flesh burnt once more. His lungs refused to fill through the pain, and once the shocks stopped they still wouldn’t. Panic rose quickly through Sidon’s mind at each failed attempt to breath, gasping fruitlessly as Mipha watched unflinchingly, the water surrounding him to shallow to cover his gills.

As black spots started to fill his vision, Mipha finally stepped forward, her hands hovering over Sidon’s torso, coated in the familiar glow as warmth stretched out across him from that spot, dulling the pain somewhat. With an almighty gasp he filled his lungs again, before choking on the air, feeling light headed and woozy. The smell of his own burning flesh reached his nostrils, and he couldn’t even stop himself trembling on the floor. But if he closed his eyes, maybe he could pretend it wasn’t happening, that Mipha was just healing him from another scrape, like when he was a child, and not because she’d so very nearly killed him.

“Do not lie to me, dear brother,” Mipha instructed, speaking as if the malice of Ganon dripped off of every single word, “You do not want to get any further onto my bad side than you already are. This,” Mipha indicated the electric burns that covered his flesh, as she stopped healing him. The pain returned threefold as he doubled into himself in shock, “is nothing compared to what I can, and will do, if you continue to lie to me.”

Sidon bit the inside of his cheek to keep himself from speaking out, wishing for the same blissful, senseless escape he’d had by passing out on the bridge. At least, if Mipha was here, maybe someone was planning a way to save him and father without being caught.

If he was that lucky anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof Mipha. Calm down there. The first real case of whump in the fic but far from the last. >:)
> 
> I have never recieved a serious electric shock but in a strange turn of events I have had a minor one from a fish tank heater. It was the weirdest feeling ever, because I didn't realise what was happening for a decent time. So, picture the scene: I'm filling up a fish tank with water. I slide the glass back, and my fingers are shaking like crazy. Like really really weird, with a strange buzzing feeling in them. "Huh, that's weird. I should check that out when I get home" I think, and pour 10 litres of water into the tank. Then, when I'm done, I notice a bit of water caught on the lip of the tank and go to brush it in with a finger. And that's when I got a shock.
> 
> The fish were fine, if you were worried.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rito village has to find a new place to live until they can figure out a way to stop Vah Medoh. But Teba and Saki have more pressing matters on their minds than being homeless.

Relocating an entire village was painfully slow, each winding path taking so much longer than any one person should take, an en masse movement to nowhere. The Rito had no destination in mind, only somewhere they knew they couldn’t stay for now. Moving further into Hebra was a poor decision, especially with all the fledgelings, but moving closer to Hyrule field was too risky, the guardians that stalked the lands too dangerous to consider getting any closer. Their travels south ended prematurely when flying guardians were spotted along the path; it was much to risky to try and fight or skirt around them.

“Couldn’t we try and seek refuse with another settlement?” One of the warriors had suggested.

“If Vah Medoh has returned, I fear for the other races. It may be best for us to keep to ourselves until we hear more news,” Kaneli had explained. So instead they travelled aimlessly, unsure of where to go.

Yet none felt as aimless as Teba, using an old discarded bow he’d found on the road, walking silently at the front of the village and keeping a tight hold of Saki, as if she too would be taken away if he ever let go. His hatred for Revali the only thing that kept him moving now, the hope that as soon as they found a place to nest for the time being he could sneak off to try and save Tulin once more.

It was too quiet. Even with the whole village travelling as one, as the elders tried to cheer the hatchlings up with assurances that it was just a big adventure, even with the warriors discussing their thoughts on the situation, arguing amongst themselves about the best route to take, it was just too quiet. Tulin would’ve asked at least three thousand questions by now, each waking moment filled with incessant chatter that drove off all but the most tenacious Rito, before the long day finally got the better of him, leading Teba to carry him the rest of the way while he slept. But it was too quiet, each moment striking hot the memory of him screaming out for his dad as that monster took him away…

“If he’s half as stubborn as you, he’ll be fine,” Saki said out of the blue, staring at Teba as if she could read his thoughts, “He could probably talk Master Revali to death before the day is done.”

“If he’s half as smart as you, he’ll talk Revali into returning him home,” Teba replied, trying to force a smile but failing, wrapping a wing around Saki’s shoulders instead. Most of the others avoided them, some too awkward to know what to say, most too worried about Teba’s sharp tongue if they misstepped.

When night fell they had to camp; they were all too tired to carry on walking, and the night brought dangers that they’d all much rather avoid, so they bunkered down in the next sheltered area they possibly could, and set about making a temporary camp there. The supplies people had grabbed as they fled the village were minimal, mostly weapons. Saki had managed to grab her blanket, as had a few other Rito, but there wasn’t enough to keep everyone warm, leading to a mass huddle instead, the few blankets going to those that needed them most. Mostly thrown over hatchlings, or going to injured warriors nursing too many missing feathers to keep themselves warm. As for Saki’s blanket…

“Here,” Teba had thrown it over Harth, who was still weary from his injuries and tried to refuse the blanket with little success, “You need it more than us.”

“I don’t want it, I can keep myself warm,” Harth snapped back, trying to gather up the blanket to throw it back, but the movement in his damaged left wing causing him to cry out instead. With a gleam of success, Teba grabbed the blanket and wrapped it around Harth again.

“Be thankful we’re not letting you freeze to death,” Teba joked, “Honestly, how many times do I need to save your feathers in one day?”

“Don’t remind me,” Harth groaned, clutching at his wing and avoiding Teba’s eyes, “I’m sorry, Teba.”

“For what?”

“For needing you to save me,” Harth said haughtily, as if the sheer thought of needing to be caught was an insult to him. “For getting shot, and worrying you, I suppose.”

“You couldn’t have known what was coming; honestly, what could you have done differently?” Teba asked. _Unlike me, who saw what Revali was about to do, who made all the important decisions today…_

“I knew about the lasers, I should’ve been more careful,” Harth hissed, pulling the blanket tighter around him, “And now Molli’s been kidnapped, and I couldn’t save her. Damnit, she’ll be so scared Teba,” Harth tried to hide a hard sniff with a cough instead as Teba sat down beside him, “She’ll be so scared and she’ll know I failed her too.”

“But she knows you tried, no one can fault you for that.”

“I can. It was stupid, trying to take on Medoh by ourselves.”

“It wasn’t stupid to try and protect our families, Harth,” Teba answered, a little more harshly than he had wanted, “You did the right thing.”

“If I did nothing we’d be in the same position, except I wouldn’t be injured,” Harth complained, “And now I can’t help fight against Vah Medoh.”

“If we stayed at the Flight Range no-one would know what we were up against. If nothing else we brought back helpful information.” Teba snapped with an air of finality. What they found out mattered, it had to, otherwise it had all been pointless…

“If I hadn’t gone, you wouldn’t have had to save me,” Harth muttered quietly, “You could have saved Tulin.”

That was it, wasn’t it? In too short of a time to truly think, Teba had to decide whether to save his son or his best friend, and now he had to live with that decision.

“But you went. If we could turn back time and try again, would you have stayed?” Teba asked. Harth paused for a long moment before answering.

“Truthfully, even if I knew I would get shot again, I would still go. Any chance of saving Molli, I would take it,” Harth answered, still avoiding Teba’s gaze, “After all, you couldn’t carry both Tulin and Molli back.”

“At least they’re not alone up there,” Teba agreed quietly, “At least they have each other.”

They sat in silence for a while, until Saki joined them with their ration of food, where all three of them ate in silence, Harth wincing any time he had to move his wing.

“Why did you catch me anyway?” Harth asked out of the blue, grabbing Teba and Saki’s attention, “You could’ve saved Tulin, but you went for me instead.”

“I was going to go back for Tulin,” Teba insisted.

“You didn’t get to see Teba getting pinned to the ground by four warriors and still try to fight them off,” Saki mentioned, “He certainly wasn’t going to give up after he caught you.”

“Sounds like something you’d do alright,” Harth joked, “But still, you had to decide whether to catch me or grab Tulin. Why did you go for me?”

Harth was finally staring straight at Teba, but Saki was not, staring intently at the remant of her meal as if she could ignore the answer by simply not acknowledging it.

“What would you have done if our roles were reversed?” Teba asked instead, half to deflect, half out of genuine curiosity. If Harth would’ve done the same, maybe his failure to save Tulin wasn’t quite so bad…

“Honestly, I’m not even sure,” Harth admitted, “To choose between you or Molli, and to live with that choice, I’m not sure I could have done it. This hurts like hell, you know,” Harth indicated his heavily bandaged wing, “But I bet you’re probably hurting more.”

“That’s enough for tonight, you two,” Saki declared with a tone of finality, “I don’t want to hear another word about today. Let’s just try to get some sleep.”

Despite her tone, Teba could see it was covering her own pain, and knew it was best to follow her orders lest one or more of them started crying. “Yes dear.”

Teba huddled up on Harth’s uninjured side, pulling Saki into him in turn. The air was nippy, but huddled like little chicks, it wouldn’t be deadly at least. The entire village had a sombre air to it tonight, as everyone thought about what they’d lost in such a short amount of time, how one night they slept in their roosts in their cosy hammocks, and now, everything was gone. And one phrase teetered on the edge of every parent’s beak as they comforted their scared children.

“At least we’re still together.”

And the silence that night was killing him.

////////////////////

“It’s really cold up here!” Tulin yelled, hoping to grab someone’s attention, “Can we have a blanket?”

No one came. No one came the last few dozen times he’d yelled either; he was pretty sure he’d seen someone on top of Medoh as the skull had flown past but he hadn’t seen anyone since. The skulls had thrown both him and Molli into this room and left them there; he hoped there was someone to hear him yell still; maybe they’d fallen off Medoh too, just as they’d seen Harth do?

The entire room was really strange. There was a big window to a much bigger room (no-one was in that room either), with a ramp leading to a doorway on the far side. The walls were unusual, they felt like they were built from stone rather than the wood Tulin was used to. There were more windows along the side of the wall outside of the room that had shown clouds far below them earlier, but there was nothing much to see through them now. The sun had gone down ages ago now, and night had settled in with an awful chill that Tulin couldn’t shake from his feathers, no matter how close he huddled to Molli.

Molli hadn’t stopped crying since they were thrown in here by those weird skulls. Tulin wanted to cry too, he really missed Mum and Dad, but if he cried then Molli would cry harder. Plus, he wasn’t sure Rito warriors even cried; he’d never seen Dad or Harth cry anyway. He could be strong and brave for Molli until Dad came to save them; he’d promised he would, after all.

“Can we have a blanket?” Tulin yelled again, before suddenly remembering, “Please?”

As if the magic word finally summoned him, a figure entered the doorway at the top of the ramp. It was too dark to see who they were, and Tulin secretly hoped it would be Dad, but the silhouette wasn’t quite right. They seemed shorter for one, and their head feathers stuck straight up rather than Dad’s more slicked back look.

“Do you ever shut up?” The figure asked.

“Not when I’m cold,” Tulin replied, “Hey! How did you get up here? Can you let us out?”

The figure spread out their wings and glided across the room to the glass wall. This close Tulin could make out a little more; the dark navy feathers weren’t familiar to him, so no-one from the village then. But something about the armor the Rito wore struck Tulin as odd: it didn’t really look like any armor he’d seen from the village. It seemed lightweight and thin as the Rito liked it, to stop them from being weighed down in flight, but it was black instead of brown leather, and missing the decorations usually seen on Rito armor. Plus the figures wings seemed weird too, and their legs were completely covered from top to tip of the talons. There were so many things to ask about, but Tulin was beaten to it.

“There’s no blankets up here, you’ll just have to tough it out,” the rito dismissively.

“Well, can you let us out then so we can go home? Or maybe you could ask my Mum if you could take my blanket?” Tulin offered.

“You don’t seem to understand what’s going on here. I kidnapped you, this isn’t some luxury holiday, you know.”

“Why?”

“What do you mean, why? I don’t have to answer any of your questions,” the Rito spat.

“Well, why did you kidnap us?”

“That’s none of your business, you wouldn’t understand anyway.”

“Who are you? Why are you up here? When can we go home?”

“My, you really don’t shut up, do you? Fine, I suppose you can learn my name, won’t do you any good though. I am Revali, Rito Champion and greatest archer in all of Hyrule,” Revali bragged.

“No, you’re not.”

“Excuse me?” Revali asked, taken aback.

“Master Revali’s a good guy, he wouldn’t kidnap chicks.”

“Hmmph,” Revali seemed annoyed by that. “Maybe I once was, but Rito village isn’t worth the pain anymore.” Revali waved his wing dismissively, and something on the end of the wing gleamed in the moonlight. It wasn’t part of Revali’s wing at all, it was something added on! Something Tulin’s Mum had said once about not asking personal questions of strangers slipped into Tulin’s mind, and slipped straight back out again.

“What’s that on your wing?” Tulin asked, pointing straight at it. It looked a little bit like the walls of the room, stone-like and carved in funny shapes, but with a bright blue circle at the end of it. Revali pulled it into himself, his eyes narrowing at Tulin.

“That’s enough for tonight. Go to sleep,” Revali commanded, turning tail.

“But we’re still cold!” Tulin complained.

“That’s your problem now. Deal with it,” Revali insisted, crouching to the floor as wind gathered around him, until it threw him up in the air near the ceiling, allowing him to glide back to the ramp. But he didn’t reach the top, and had to walk back up, leaving Tulin and Molli once more in the dark. Molli’s sobs had quietened to sniffles, having final cried herself out, as Tulin huddled closer to her, pulling in his toes so they weren’t exposed. He really wish he could cuddle in between Mum and Dad right now, they were always so warm. But maybe if he imagined he was there, he could keep himself warm just for tonight.

Maybe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I meant to say this last chapter and forgot so here it is now: Urbosa and Daruk are also back at this time and causing chaos for the Gerudo and the Gorons respectively but I can't really be arsed to write that and as this fic is aimed mainly at myself, I'm just gonna like, skip those entire sections for now. The long and short of it is:  
> Daruk and Vah Rudania have caused such volcanic destruction that the gorons (including Yunobo who feels awful about it all) have had to relocated to the stables leading to Death Mountain instead. Urbosa meanwhile has instead simply returned to Gerudo Town and, as a chief who technically wasn't dead and therefore shouldn't have been replaced, reclaimed her position peacefully. Riju smells something fishy and, alongisde Buliara, has left Gerudo Town to try and find out what's going on.  
> Yunobo and Riju will turn up in later chapters and I might go back and write extra chapters covering these events at a later date. But not now.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So long as at least one person is willing and able to do the right thing, the world can still be saved.

Night had settled in by the time Sidon awoke again, a flash of panic kicking in as he scanned the room looking for Mipha, but she wasn’t here. She’d left some hours ago, he reminded himself, taking the lizalfos with her and leaving him half conscious on the flooded floor. His heart was still thundering from the shocks, his skin still uncomfortably warm, but it was no longer searing. Everything still ached though.

He leaned against the wall he had been chained to, trying to piece together what was happening. Mipha had returned, but she wasn’t quite herself, blaming him for… something. He had yet to figure that out, but he knew her ire was aimed towards him all the same. It seemed she blamed him for the Domain forgetting about her, or not caring about her, neither of which was true. So why she thought that…

He wanted to sleep, to put as much time between him and that awful memory as possible, to hope that his scales would burn less when he woke up again, but his heart was racing too much for that. Instead he focused on his breathing, and the ripples in the water around him, hoping to calm himself down, trying to think of a positive spin on the situation. But all he could come up with was that Mipha was still alive, and that brought back the vision of her watching stone faced as the lizalfos nearly killed him.

The gate shifted. His breath caught.

A spear made its way under the gate, lifting it slowly up as if to avoid making noise. That couldn’t be Mipha then, she wouldn’t need to do either of those things. The spear pushed the gate all the way up and then was jammed beneath it, keeping it open, as a familiar, dark shape pushed its way into the room.

“Captain Bazz?” Sidon asked.

“Shh! We’ll talk more once I get you out of here,” Bazz whispered, the moonlight hitting off his armor and hurting Sidon’s eyes as he rushed towards the shackles keeping Sidon in place, taking care to avoid making sounds with the water underfoot. He paused as he neared, a look of horror on his face, “Prince Sidon, your scales-“

They looked as bad as they felt then. But rather than admit it, Sidon shook his head and smiled instead, “Never fear, they’ll heal soon.” Bazz stared for a moment longer, before shaking his head clear and getting to work on the shackles. Within a minute the first lock was picked, releasing Sidon’s wrist as Bazz got to work on the second one. Sidon took the opportunity to check Bazz for any signs of injuries too, but it seemed his sister had spared the captain from her wrath. The second shackle fell away from Sidon’s wrist, and he pushed himself up from the wall.

Or he would have, had a brief moment of breathlessness surrounding a sudden ache in his chest not sent Sidon careening straight back to the floor, only to be caught in time by a very concerned looking Bazz. Sidon shook his head, “Do not fear, Bazz. I’m fine, just… a little tired.”

“We need to get out of here, and fast. Someone will pass by soon and you should be gone by then. Come, this way,” Bazz instructed, making towards the gateway and checking outside of the room. Sidon took a deep breath and followed suit, his legs complaining all the while, but they weren’t too difficult to ignore. Or at least, he could tell himself that they weren’t. “Coast is clear, nearest exit is to the right.”

Sidon stepped out of the room, not managing to stop himself from stopping and staring in awe at Vah Ruta’s vast insides. Water wheels stood unmoving in the still water pools, reflecting the moonlight shining in from the open roof. The same stoney walls from the control room reached heavenwards. From all the years of standing on the dam walls and staring at Ruta, hoping for a sign of Mipha, imagining what the beast was like on the inside, he’d never guessed this. The clattering of the gate and Bazz’s quiet cursing brought Sidon back to the present. Just as promised, to the right of where they stood was a doorway to outside, with a balcony beyond it.

“Are you good to swim?” Bazz asked quietly.

“Always.”

They crossed the distance quickly; the hard stone floor under foot was dry, and their wet footprints marked their escape clearly. Sidon took precaution to step over each of Bazz’s foot steps, hoping to mask that someone had helped him escape.

They dove off the balcony into the ice cold water beneath. For a moment the impact sent spikes of pain back through Sidon, having to force himself not to gasp in shock, but quickly the cold water soothed the pain instead, and he found he could follow Bazz easily to the North East side of the reservoir, far from the Domain and the Lizalfos keeping guard on the West side of the reservoir.

Once there, Bazz pulled himself out of the water, and Sidon debated whether to stay in for the time being, grateful for the numbing chill. But they were still in sight of the patrolling Lizalfos, and in range of Vah Ruta’s attacks too, so instead Sidon pulled himself out of the water, the shock of the cold night air on his damaged scales almost sending him plummeting back into the water as his grip slipped. Bazz managed to catch him in time, helping Sidon pull himself up onto the bank.

“If we travel just a little further, we’ll be out of sight. Will that be alright, my Prince?”

“Yes, don’t worry about me, I shall be fine,” Sidon tried to reassure him, but neither took a step forward, “Although, perhaps, a shoulder to lean on might be appreciated?”

They moved as quickly as Sidon could manage up the small bank to the waterfall beneath Tal Tal peak. The rocks between them and the Reservoir provided enough protection that they slowed down once behind them, carrying on to the pond nearby. Sidon eyed the boulders scattered around not too far from them, belonging to a Talus, but they didn’t shift. Once at the pong Sidon slipped back into the water, once again stinging his aching burns for a moment before cooling them instead.

“Thank you, Captain Bazz,” Sidon said, but the look on Bazz’s face quickly quietened him.

“I’m afraid I can’t stay here very long, my Prince. Lady Mipha will notice your absence, and if I am not seen in the Domain soon, she’ll figure out what happened,” Bazz explained. “The guards are keeping the peace in the Domain; no-one else has been harmed yet, but no-one is allowed to leave. Muzu is acting as advisor to Lady Mipha, and he’s keeping everything running so far.”

“What of my Father?”

“We haven’t seen the King either; you were both taken to Ruta and that was the last we saw. I’m sure he’ll be fine!” Bazz added quickly as he saw the fear in Sidon’s eyes, “But I didn’t have time to look for and save both of you. Finley overheard Lady Mipha asking Muzu the most efficient way to take the crown, and Muzu suggested that, due to her absence and not aging, if she were to kill King Dorephan first, the crown would transfer to you, which is a bit of extra paperwork to sort out before she could take the title. I thought she would kill you first, so if you’re not here, then…”

“If she can’t kill me, she won’t kill Father yet,” Sidon finished.

“Yes. So, please, you must leave Lanaryu. Get as far from here as possible, before Mipha can track you down. The guards will protect the people in your stead.”

Bazz said the words with such conviction, it almost hid the fear Sidon could hear in them. Sidon did not like the idea of leaving the Domain to the mercy of Mipha, mercy that had once flown freely from every smile and word she shared with the world, but now was hidden so deep within her Sidon couldn’t even see them anymore. He didn’t want to leave, but if there was any hope to be had to save Zora’s Domain, he had to. With a nod, he pushed backwards from the edge of the pond to get closer to the waterfall as Bazz took a deep breath, saluting Sidon as he went.

“Good luck Captain Bazz,” Sidon wished him, rolling in the water to face the waterfall, ready to swim up it. Where he would go beyond that, he didn’t know. Seeking out help from the other races seemed like an idea, but if Mipha had come back and done what she did, what of the other champions? Were they, too, serving this mysterious Ganondorf? He started his ascent.

“And to you, Prince Sidon.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Boy Sidon, that's a mighty kind captain of the Guard you have there. Be a shame if something... were to happen to him...
> 
> I'm planning on posting chapters every Saturday night (GMT) So if you're wanting to keep up with the story, you only have to check on Saturday nights now. Rather than me posting like an excited child every time I finish a new chapter.
> 
> Also I started uploading this while playing Animal Crossing and downloading Sims 2 Bon Voyage so? Multi tasking?


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Four very different heroes, one goal in mind.

The novelty of being outside of the Gerudo Desert was very quickly wearing off. What had started as an exciting trek through grasslands was quickly becoming tiring, the same repititive green quickly giving Riju a headache. Buliara didn’t seem much happier about the situation; the amount of monsters they’d passed on the roads was already too much for Buliara to be happy about, and the battles were clearly tiring Buliara out too. Despite Riju’s insistence that she and Patricia could help out with the fighting, Buliara wouldn’t let them.

“We should stop for the night,” Riju declared as they passed by some ruins at the side of the road. They looked like they’d provide decent wind cover, but when Riju started to head towards them, Buliara redirected her to an old outpost instead.

“The sky looks threatening, Lady Riju. We should stay somewhere with more rain cover.”

“Oh, yes, of course.”

They set a small fire and ate what they’d found growing on the roads here, a meagre meal but enough to keep them going. Patricia had slid off to find her own food, keeping in sight of Riju at all times. They’d packed light for the travel, but Buliara had insisted they bring a blanket each, and Riju was very glad for it right now.

“Thank you for coming with me, you know you didn’t have to,” Riju stated, cuddling up under her blanket. Buliara waved it off.

“You are still important enough to be in danger, my lady, and I refuse to let you travel alone.” Buliara insisted, “Plus, if your mother heard I’d left you unattended, she’d come back just to punish me for it.”

Riju laughed, trying to ignore the gnawing sense of sadness at the mention of Mother. Everything seemed to have just gone downhill since her death, first the helm was stolen, and while Lady Urbosa’s return was welcomed greatly, something seemed so off to Riju that she just couldn’t leave it be. Nothing had gone right for too long; she wished to be wrong about Lady Urbosa, she really did, but if she was wrong, what would that mean for her?

She must’ve been quiet for too long, as Buliara spoke up to drag her out of her thoughts. “Where are we headed, my lady?”

“There’s a forest up North I believe, and I feel we may find some answers there,” Riju explained. She knew very little of this forest, not even its name, but she’d felt an overwhelming need to head towards it.

“A forest up north? Did you hear of this from your mother?” Buliara asked.

“No, not exactly…” Maybe she had, at some point, maybe it was some distant memory reaching out to her from a story long since forgotten. Her heart ached from the loss once more. “I can’t explain it, I’m afraid.”

“…Very well, I will trust your judgement, Chief Riju,” Buliara nodded.

“I’m not Chief anymore,” Riju corrected her.

“Maybe not, but I shall still listen to you as if you were. Now, maybe you should get some sleep. We have a long walk ahead of us tomorrow.”

Riju nodded, and tried to settle down, pulling her blanket tight around her to keep out the cold breeze. The day had worn her out, and it wasn’t long before she was drifting off, thinking of the journey ahead, and that unsettling stare Urbosa had given her when she’d returned for her throne, as if she would have taken it by force if Riju had tried to dig her heels in.

Yet everyone had been so glad of Urbosa’s return, how could she suspect the beloved Champion of wrongdoing, when it was so obvious everyone had wanted someone else as chief. That they wanted anyone but Riju…

As she was close to drifting off, the blanket was nestled closer to her again, in such a gentle way she could almost imagine it was Mother again.

////////////////////////////

“We could just shelter here for the time being, with a little bit of work we can make it warm enough, and there’s no pressing threats nearby.”

“There’s no telling how long we will be away from Rito Village. The days are warm for now, but once it starts to get colder, we will freeze here. We must keep moving.”

The early morning discussions of the next step of their journey were well underway, taking more consideration than they’d given yesterday, now that getting as far from Vah Medoh as quickly as possible was less of a priority. Once breakfast had finished, all the adult Rito had met up to plan the journey, or more importantly the destination, while the children set about cleaning up after them all.

Teba had been keeping quiet for the most part; he hadn’t slept well last night at all, each time he dozed off he was jumped awake by the memory of falling through the sky after Harth, each time he fell asleep properly he was plagued with nightmares of Tulin being carried away from him, or crying, or falling off of Vah Medoh with no one to catch him. Trying to nap now was pointless with all the bickering, and Teba was irritable when he was tired. Listening to everyone else bicker was quickly getting on his nerves.

“But go where? You said we couldn’t stay with the Gorons, the Zora or the Gerudo, and the Sheikah are too far away to travel to with this many people.”

“I know, I know. That’s why we’re discussing it now. Travelling onwards without a clear plan is too dangerous,” Kaneli mused, “So if anyone has any good ideas, do speak up.”

“Hyrule field has a bunch of ruins, maybe we could go there?”

“Too many guardians.”

“Tabantha?”

“Again, the guardians between us and there are too great in number to pass by with this many people.”

“Are you sure we can’t just try the other races?”

“I’m sure they’ve got plenty on their plate at the minute without us turning up.”

“What about the Great Forest?” Teba asked. He wasn’t entirely sure where the idea came from, it was more of a nagging thought at the back of his head. But the others gave him a funny look.

“Do you want to get us all lost in there?”

“We wouldn’t have to go far into the forest, but there’s no guardians on the way,” Teba pointed out.

“Yes, but we wouldn’t be able to see through the trees in there; we wouldn’t be able to see any oncoming dangers.”

“If we have warriors keeping watch at the top of the trees, we probably will. It’s sheltered, warmer than here, and will easily fit us all. Not to mention, there’s enough wood for us to set up a base there.” Teba insisted. Really, the Great Forest was their best bet, he just knew it. Not to mention, it’d be easy to disappear into the trees and give Kaneli the slip so he can return to Rito Village again once Saki was safe.

Kaneli seemed to realise that too, as he was closely scrutinising Teba while considering his words. Teba tried to stay as non-chalant as possible under the intense stare, until finally Kaneli nodded.

“Teba makes a good point. It’s not impossibly far either; closer than the nearest major settlement anyway.” Kaneli agreed, but kept his stare on Teba. “If anyone has a better idea, speak now, or we will head off shortly.”

The crowd didn’t seem too happy about the idea, but no one had a better idea to put forward. With annoyed grumbles they dispersed to pack up the makeshift camp, ready to move on, albeit reluctantly.

“They’re just unhappy that Kaneli’s order wasn’t to go home,” Saki assured him. But Teba wasn’t paying attention, still locked eyes with Kaneli. If the old owl knew what Teba was planning, Teba didn’t care. Nothing was going to stop him from saving Tulin. Not distance, not risk, and certainly not Kaneli. As soon as they were all safe in the Great Forest, he was gone. And he wasn’t coming back without his son.

/////////////////////////////////////

The issue with Akkala, as Sidon saw it, was that there wasn’t enough water. Unlike Lanaryu, which had water surrounding all major routes, he was having to travel along roads for vast distances flanked by fields and rocky outcrops. It was less than ideal. The sun had rose not long ago, peering above the ancient ruins of outposts left behind from The Great Calamity, bringing warmth to an otherwise chilly morning. He had a destination in mind, at least, even if he wasn’t entirely sure why.

Korok Forest.

Father had told him some years ago about the legends saying The Sword That Seals The Darkness was kept there, hidden among the trees, but the idea of him wielding that… No. It would do no good for him; in the legends, the Hero always killed Ganon with that sword, and Sidon was not going to use it against Mipha. No matter what. So why he sought the forest was still a mystery to him, but something deep in his mind told him it was the place to go.

His scales still hurt like crazy, but they were easily enough to ignore if he just kept moving, or at least he told himself so.

By midday he’d made it to Lake Cephala, but a curious sight in the distance made him stop. The nearby stabled were surrounded by more Gorons than he’d have expected to be there. A lot more Gorons. Every inch of free space around the stables seemed to be taken up by either a Goron or sparce belongings, presumably belonging to the Gorons. Curiosity won him over, and he diverted from his path to see what was going on, and whether they needed any help. But they seemed more annoyed than hurt, with a collection of them stood at the base of Death Mountain, staring up at and shouting at each other. Sidon stepped closer to one of the younger Gorons, who was stood watching the mountain silently.

“Might I ask what is going on?” Sidon asked, receiving a shriek of surprise from the Goron, as a bright yellow magic sphere surrounded him in an instant, knocking Sidon backwards. The surprise caught Sidon off-guard, but not long enough to not notice the similar feel to the magic, so different, yet so similar to Mipha’s. Sidon’s chest suddenly felt very cold.

“Oh! Sorry,” The Goron apologised, as the barrier disappeared again. He looked incredibly sheepish now. “I didn’t hear you, I thought you were... Um, are you okay?”

Sidon collected himself again in an instant; there was probably a very, very reasonable explanation as to why this stranger had the powers of a Champion, and there was no reason to fear that he too was serving Ganondorf, right? “Oh, yes, sorry, you caught me by surprise. Fear not, it shall not happen again.”

“I meant your…” the Goron waved nervously at Sidon’s side where the electricity had struck. He’d still not actually thought to check it out yet, too focused on getting to Korok Forest to stop and tend to it yet. “It looks like it hurts.”

“I’ve suffered worse,” Sidon reassured him, although the details of such injury were evading him at the moment. “Forgive me for repeating myself, but why are there so many Gorons down here?”

“Oh…” He looked back up at Death Mountain, pointing to a distant figure upon it. It was tough to tell from this distance, but the stone work and delicate light show reminded Sidon of Vah Ruta. “The Great Daruk finally returned. We were all so happy, we didn’t realise what he was planning to do.”

A trickle of fear ran down Sidon’s spine, but he quickly shook it off. “Was anyone hurt?”

“A few people, but we got everyone off Death Mountain in time. So now we’re stuck here.” The Goron was staring at the volcano with a look stuck somewhere between fear and regret. “Um, who are you anyway? What are you doing here?”

“Oh, excuse my bad manners. I am Prince Sidon, of the Zora. And what might I call you?” Sidon asked.

“A Prince? Erm, was I meant to bow? Sorry.” The Goron tried to bow quickly, but it ended up being more of a nervous squat.

“Oh, no, don’t you worry about that. What is your name?” Sidon asked again.

“Ah! Sorry. I’m Yunobo. You might want to talk to the older Gorons instead, Prince. I’m not much help.”

“Nonsense, you have been amazing help so far!” Sidon insisted, going to give Yunobo a grin until the movement sent stabs of pain through his side again, turning the grin into more of a wince instead. Yunobo looked even more worried than before now. “Honestly, I’m fine.”

“Saying it doesn’t make it true, y’know” Yunobo scolded lightly, until he realised he was saying it out loud, and started looking even more horrified. “I meant-“

“No, you are right,” Sidon agreed. No time like the present to confront his injuries. “Is there a mirror near here, or some water, that I might see to myself?”

“Yes! I can help with that,” Yunobo nodded, the sudden determination on his face a lovely surprise, “There’s some hot springs just up this way a bit, it shouldn’t be too close to anger Vah Rudania. Come on, I’ll show you!”

Yunobo led the way, eyes kept towards Rudania for any signs that it might attack them on the way. Sidon followed, lagging behind as he too looked up to the distant Divine Beast. What had happened to their champions?

The path beyond the stables was mostly deserted; a few Gorons had yelled at Yunobo to be careful as they passed, but no one went to stop him. _How strange_ , Sidon thought, surely it’s dangerous to get closer?

The air was quickly heating up, drying off Sidon’s scales, making movement even more uncomfortable. They weren’t burning yet, but had Sidon not seen the hot springs coming up soon, he would have shouted out to Yunobo that he couldn’t travel any further in this heat. But if he turned around now, he’d completely dry out, and that wouldn’t do him any favours either.

“Here we are,” Yunobo whispered, as if worried the Beast could hear them from this distance, “will this work?”

Sidon nodded, inching closer to the water as his reflection started to show. A pit formed in his stomach as he thought back on Bazz’s horrified look, at Yunobo’s concern, and the looks he’d gotten from fellow traveller’s on his journey. But he made it this far, right? It’s couldn’t be all that bad…

It was.

The scales immediately around the hit itself had gone black, completely dead, and it looked as if the flesh underneath had done the same. Beyond that the scales were burned raw red, almost hidden by his natural scale colour but he knew himself well enough to know how bad it was, not to mention how he could feel how bad it was. More of the flesh looked ghostly white, and running out from the impact itself were lightning lines that sparked out far across his torso. It looked awful.

But there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t have Mipha’s healing abilities, nor any potions to help deal with the wound, or even prevent infection. He didn’t even have access to cold water to try and soothe it. With the Gorons pushed out of Death Mountain, it didn’t feel right to ask them for help. There was absolutely nothing he could do.

Yunobo must’ve seen something along those lines in Sidon’s face, as he spoke up, “Apparently the hot springs are pretty good at healing wounds, maybe you could try it?”

Something told Sidon the spring wouldn’t do much for his burns, but he needed the water anyway. Bracing himself, he slipped into the water, hissing as the heat hit his burnt scales. The pain faded slightly after a while, but he could still feel it. At least he wasn’t dry anymore.

“So, have you still had worse injuries?” Yunobo asked. The question caught Sidon off-guard, and he couldn’t help but chortle slightly at it.

“I will have to wrack my brains and get back to you,” Sidon replied, slipping further into the water until only his head was up.

“What brought you here anyway?” Yunobo asked, sitting down on the floor beside the spring, “I’ve never seen a Zora here before.”

“Our champion returned too, and I dare say it went as well as Daruk’s return,” Sidon answered solemly. The less he had to talk about it, the better.

“Is that how you got burnt?” Yunobo asked, picking up on Sidon’s reluctance to keep talk just a moment too late, “Sorry, I’ll drop it now.”

“I was just passing by and wondered why there were so many people here. I had considered that the other champions may have returned too, but Zora naturally live a very long time, so it wasn’t too unusual that Mipha had survived.”

“Gorons too, so who knows what’s going on with the other Champions,” Yunobo added. He was still watching Vah Rudania as it patrolled Death Mountain, looking contemplative.

“A rupee for your thoughts?” Sidon asked. Yunobo shook his head.

“You said you were on your way somewhere? Are you still going?” Yunobo asked.

“Yes. I’m not sure why, but I feel like I must. Maybe I can find a way to help save Mipha from herself…” Sidon trailled off at the end. Surely something good of Mipha must still be there, hidden from view. If he could just find it…

“’Feel like you must’… Are you going to Korok Forest?” Yunobo asked, his voice picking up in his excitement, before slapping his hands over his mouth, glancing back at Vah Rudania, who didn’t respond. Sidon did not miss it, however.

“What gave you that impression?” Sidon asked, trying to put as little care into his voice as possible, but under the surface, the memory of Yunobo’s champion powers had bubbled back into his mind.

“I’ve been feeling the same way too, but Bludo said it’s too far, and there’s lots of monsters on the way, so I got scared. But, if you’re heading that way, maybe we could go together?”

“Maybe…” Sidon agreed. It was risky, if Yunobo was secretly working for this Ganondorf, walking the roads alone with him was dangerous. But walking alone wasn’t safe either, considering Sidon didn’t have any of his weapons. Sidon didn’t want to suspect the poor Yunobo of planning any wrongdoing, but neither had he suspected Mipha to do so. Whatever was he to do…


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You can't really hide that you helped a prisoner escape for very long.

The early afternoon brought a cold chill across Zora’s Domain as Gaddison approached the throne room alongside the other royal knights. They had all been called with little warning, and the message didn’t sound like a happy one. The tension they’d all been covering up the past few days, trying to ignore the electric lizalfos that now made the Domain home, trying to keep the children smiling as they hid from the once well-loved Mipha, all that tension was now piling up beneath Gaddison’s scales, and she could see it in the faces of her fellow guards. Each held their head high, tried to keep their calm as they’d been trained to do, each biting their cheeks to busy themselves from their concerns.

The throne was much too large for Princess Mipha, as she sat at the very edge, as proper as any princess should. Her face was unreadable, just as King Dorephan would hold himself in court. Calm, collected, and yet Gaddison could sense the danger in the throne room. Muzu stood in his usual place, eyes darting back and forth between Mipha and the royal knights. Something told Gaddison he didn’t know what this meeting was about either, which unsettled her even more. Muzu had been working quietly to try and temper Mipha, to make sure she didn’t cause too much trouble, all under the guise of helping her. Without Muzu’s guidance, anything could happen here.

But tension and unsettling news was not the same as fear, and the knights stood facing against Mipha, spears left at the foot of the stairs as per instructions. Captain Bazz stepped forward.

“You called for us, your highness?” Bazz asked. Mipha quietly looked between them all, before starting.

“Yes, I did. I do not wish to accuse anyone of acting against the interests of the Domain, but it seems we do have a traitor in our midst,” Mipha explained. Muzu’s eyes shot open as he turned to Mipha, a questioning look in his eyes but his tongue stayed but Mipha’s hand raising to shush him. None of the knights reacted; they knew each other to be loyal, and the accusation fell short. “I am sure they know who they are. Step forward now, and I shall be lenient for your honesty.”

No one stepped forward.

“If you would explain what this crime entailed, we may be able to help you find them,” Bazz offered.

“I do not need any help,” Mipha insisted sharply, “Only a royal knight could have carried out this crime, so I will ask again. Who did it? They know what it is they have done, so they should step forward now, before I lose my patience.”

The last few words came out between Mipha’s teeth, yet still no one stood forward.

“Last chance,” Mipha warned, eyes narrowing. The knights stood firm. With a sigh, Mipha rose to her feet, barely even reaching the shoulders of the youngest knight, yet in an instant, trained into them, they all bowed to her as if she was queen. Just as Bazz had instructed them, under the guidance of Muzu, to prevent any further damage to the Domain. Mipha took a step closer to them. “Last night a prisoner was released without permission, and they have not been returned yet. The shackle’s lock had been picked. Someone had to have shirked their duties last night, and caused great risk to the safety of the realm, both by leaving it undefended and by releasing the prisoner. One of you must have noticed something, and I suggest you come forward with your information.”

The mention of the shackles lock being picked caused Gaddison’s mouth to go dry: she knew exactly who it was. Captain Bazz had decided to teach them all the importance of not leaving prisoners, which the Domain rarely had anyway, unattended, by having Prince Sidon lock him up in shackles. The Captain had learnt to pick locks before the event, but hadn’t thought to practice picking locks on shackles he was currently wearing himself before making it into a spectacle. Rivan had pretended to lose the keys too, once they’d all realised what had happened, leaving Captain Bazz locked up for three days until Sidon finally convinced Rivan to let him go. The memory was stuck in her mind forever now, she couldn’t easily forget that Bazz was the only knight who’d ever thought to learn to pick locks.

No doubt the other knights would remember it too. The testament to their loyalty to their captain was in their stony faced silence.

“No-one? What a shame our guards are so unobservant they did not even notice one of their own going rogue,” Mipha chastised, “maybe I could find a way to refresh your memories?”

“Queen Mipha, I don’t think any of them did do it. Our knights are all loyal, to accuse them of this is-“ Muzu tried to reason, but Mipha silenced him.

“Indeed, they are loyal; I will not insult the innocent by saying they are not. But I fear someone in the Royal Guard is more loyal to my father than to Zora’s Domain. That simply will not do.” Mipha stepped closer to Captain Bazz, her golden eyes cold and piercing, as if she already knew who it was. Bazz didn’t flinch, just returned it.

“We would never risk harm to the Domain. I promise you that,” Bazz answered. Her eyes narrowing, Mipha stepped back, straightening her back and taking a deep breath, before returning a small smile to her face. The same that showed on her statue, the same soft smile that the elders, back when they were warriors themselves, would’ve laid down their lives for, but now they hid in fear of it.

“Well then. I suppose I will just have to take your word for it. A royal knight could not have done this, and after all, I already know the culprit,” Mipha announced casually as she returned to the throne, but it sent a ripple of concern across the crowd. For a second, Bazz’s composure faultered, but he quickly recollected himself.

“Wonderful, and who would that be?” He asked.

“One of the children overheard my discussion with Muzu yesterday, I imagine she misheard it from straining her ears too hard, and acted rashly. She must still be punished, of course.”

Bazz’s breath caught, and the knights looked between themselves in horror. Punish her how? If Mipha was truly accusing a child of treason, then any punishment was on the table. “My Queen, I suggest being more forgiving. To accuse a child of treason, you could start an uprising!” Muzu protested.

“She is on the cusp of adulthood, if she is old enough to betray me she is old enough to accept her punishment for doing so. Knights, bring Finley here,” Mipha commanded. No-one moved, too shocked to do or say anything but stare at Mipha. She couldn’t be serious. “Now!”

The sudden shout made them flinch, but before anyone could take a step towards retrieving Finley, Bazz stepped forward, his face set in stone. “There is no need, Finley didn’t do it.”

“Hadn’t we already discussed how none of the knights could have done this?” Mipha asked.

“No-one else realised. I set the patrols, I know the locks in Zora’s Domain best. I released Prince Sidon, and assisted his escape from Lanaryu,” Bazz announced, gripping his spear tightly to hide his shaking hands, “and I did it alone. Might I suggest you get better protection for important prisoners, Princess?”

Gaddison half expected Mipha to fly into a fury at the blatant disrespect, but the knowing smile on her face told them that she’d known from the start. “Who would have thought Zora Domain’s most loyal and brave Captain Bazz could carry out such treachery?” Mipha asked.

“I am loyal to Zora’s Domain. But I am also loyal to King Dorephan and Prince Sidon,” Bazz declared. Gaddison pulled back the knights to Bazz’s right, while Rivan led away the knights on the left, giving space to the Captain if this led to a fight. The urge to join in was great, but Bazz gave them all a look to stand down, and they had to obey. For the good of the Zora, they had to fight another day. “What did you do to him?” Bazz hissed, adjusting his spear so he was ready to fight. Mipha stood up slowly.

“Why explain, when I can show you instead?” she offered, pulling out her Lightscale Trident. “Stand down, Captain Bazz, and I’ll be merciful.” Gaddison moved to join Bazz, but he shouted out before she could do so.

“Nobody move! If you think I’ll go without a fight, Mipha, then you really have lost your mind.” Bazz taunted, but Mipha only laughed in response, before bringing the prongs of her spear crashing down towards Bazz.

Without hesitation, he blocked the blow with his own spear before trying to twist the two spears out of Mipha’s grasp unsuccessfully. Mipha stepped forward as her spear came back round, aiming a side blow against Bazz’s gills only for him to leap backwards out of the way just in time, aiming his spear in the same movement at Mipha’s chest, thrusting forward with all his weight towards her.

But Mipha was too quick, using the wet floor to slide past Bazz and, in the same movement, bring her trident to strike his ribs, pulling back the trident and leaving holes above his gills that quickly poured with blood.

Ignoring the wound, Bazz pulled his spear back in time to block another blow, and then another. Mipha was too fast for him to find a window to try and attack her back, but his wound was bleeding profusely still, and he slowed fast. Eventually, Mipha thrust his spear out of his hands with a well aimed blow, and Bazz collapsed to his knees.

Every instinct told the knights to rush forward to help their captain, but Bazz stopped them again, “No. I’m fine. Let our champion decide my fate.”

Mipha stood the trident up on its end beside her, staring down at Bazz with a strange look in her eyes. Gaddison’s hands twitched around her spear; if Mipha ordered an execution, she wasn’t going to accept it, no matter what Bazz said. She would fight to her own death, if it meant someone else wouldn’t meet theirs.

The scurrying footsteps of lizalfos climbing the stairs to the throne room grabbed all of their attention. Three electric ones had appeared, with a moblin at the foot of the steps. How Mipha had managed to control them was beyond anyone’s understanding, but at least they didn’t pose a threat. For now.

“Take him to Vah Ruta. Make sure he’s not left alone, I will not have a repeat of last night,” Mipha commanded as the lizalfos grabbed Bazz, the sparking of their horns warning him to come quietly. “I dare say I can’t trust my knights to watch him.”

Gaddison watched as helpless as the rest as Captain Bazz was dragged off down the stairs towards the moblin waiting below. The distant cry of Vah Ruta, as it moved towards the edge of the reservoir to pick up its new prisoner, had all the knights staring at it. Without the King, the Prince or the Captain of the guard, they were basically leaderless, left to the whims of a mad Princess that called herself Queen. Mipha returned to the thone, settling down into it comfortably, fixing them all with a sweet smile, as if there was anything in this situation that was normal or okay.

“That is all. You are all dismissed.” The anger burning in Gaddison almost made her forget to bow before she turned to leave, only reminded by Dunma pushing on her back to get her to bow. “With one last warning,” Mipha added. All the knights raised their heads to see her, still smiling, but in the way a lynel might smile at the traveller as it tormented their final hours. “The next time someone sets foot on the reservoir or in Vah Ruta, I will not be so forgiving. Protect the Domain for me, as you are sworn to do. Heed this warning; there will not be a second.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh nooo who could've forseen the consequences to Bazz's actions?
> 
> This chapter ended up a lot longer than it was meant to, it was originally planned to be half of a chapter alongside what will now be a later chapter (not the next one tho). Oh well. What do you guys think so far?


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Korok Forest is calling

Yunobo was getting increasingly worried about Sidon. Since they left the stables behind, Yunobo convincing Bludo he had to leave to help his injured friend get to his destination, Sidon had been slowing down, and what started as mere flinches every so often when his burns were disturbed was quickly becoming full on grimaces with every step. Yet the Zora refused to rest, and the more Yunobo asked the quieter Sidon seemed to get, as if giving Yunobo the silent treatment. It made for an awkward journey, one which Yunobo wished to finish quickly, yet with Sidon slowing down at an increasingly rapid rate, didn’t seem likely.

By sunset they were in the fields to the north east of Hyrule castle. Yunobo had never seen it this close before; he remembered being carried up one of the cliffs of Death Mountain when he was younger by his father, so that they could eat breakfast while gazing out at Hyrule castle together, and it was even more beautiful up close. And yet, so different too. Before Yunobo had thought it seemed lonely, sat quietly in the middle of Hyrule Field, no signs of movement or life, but now, even from this distance, he could see the guardians and monsters swarming the castle. The once lifeless castle was filled to the brim with all manner of terrifying creatures, and Yunobo couldn’t help freezing at the thought of them getting any closer. Sidon noticed.

“Is everything alright?”

“Yeah, just looking at the castle,” Yunobo pointed to it. Sidon turned to view it himself, taking a deep breath, but showing no signs of fear at the monsters inside. “What if those monsters came after us?”

“I’m certain they won’t come this way. And if they do, they’ll find their match in us,” Sidon assured him, before carrying on their journey, hissing slightly at the first step.

“Maybe we should rest for tonight. It’ll be dark soon,” Yunobo offered, but Sidon shook his head.

“We’re as close to Korok Forest as the nearest stables now, it would be best if we just carry on to our destination.”

“But, there’s no where to rest in Korok forest, right? Surely it’s no safer than sleeping at the side of the road.”

“Never the less, I would like to get to Korok Forest as soon as possible. If you wish to travel to the stables or stay here the night, then feel free, but I’m sorry to say I won’t be going with you,” Sidon said with an air of finality, walking off down the road leading towards the forest. With a sigh of defeat, Yunobo followed after him, keeping his eyes open for somewhere he could convince Sidon to rest for the night, and hoping they didn’t run into any more monsters.

////////////////////

By nightfall, they were nearing the edges of the forest.

The lake that surrounded Korok forest was eerily blank under the night sky, without a single star to see behind the thick clouds that had settled in. Through the trees Yunobo could see a thick fog settled in the forest, but he couldn’t see any movement among them. It wasn’t very reassuring; he could barely see the trees themselves through the dark night and choking fog. They could very well walk into an ambush, and they’d be none the wiser.

“I don’t know about this,” Yunobo said, wringing his hands anxiously, “What if this is a trap?”

“Trap or not, we can’t turn back now, when we’re this close. I can take the lead if you’re worried?” Sidon offered, but that was hardly ideal either. He could barely hide the pain from his voice anymore, and if they were caught in an ambush, he certainly couldn’t fight. Instead, Yunobo took a swallowed, took a deep breath, and stepped forward.

“N-no, it’s fine. I can do it.”

The forest was quiet, the ground underfoot damp, each footstep muffled. Where exactly they were planning to go once in the forest was beyond Yunobo, but at least they’d arrived. Maybe now Sidon would finally rest. Although, keeping watch in the forest sounded like an awful idea. They wouldn’t be able to see a hinox approaching, never mind anything smaller!

The rustle of leaves overhead made Yunobo jump, almost landing on Sidon stood behind him. For a moment, Yunobo wanted to write it off as leaves, but on closer inspection, some of the branches above them were oddly shaped, almost as if they were…

Bows.

In blind panic, Yunobo summoned Daruk’s protection again, cowering from the attackers. But instead of the sound of bow strings snapping into place after an arrow, he instead heard a loud grunt, followed by the sound of someone falling to the floor. He couldn’t see anyone past his hands covering his face, but the pieces slowly fell into his mind. There was only one person stood close enough to get knocked back by Daruk’s protection…

Yunobo turned to where Sidon was crouched, one hand bracing himself against the floor, barely keeping himself upright, the other hovering over his burns. His breathing was laboured, but still he tried to mask it. Yunobo quickly dropped the protection, rushing instead to Sidon’s aid.

“I’m sorry! I am so sorry, I forget, I wasn’t thinking, are you okay?” Yunobo asked. The protection wouldn’t have injured Sidon, but the knock back from being in range would have aggravated his wounds. Sidon tried to force a smile, as if to wave away his concerns, but all that came out was a pained gasp and a grimace. Voices in the trees made its way to Yunobo’s ears, and he turned back to face them, raising his shaking fists to protect them both if need be. But no arrows were released, the bows seemingly lowered at the discovery of the injured Zora. A rustle in the leaves grabbed Yunobo’s attention, pulling his gaze straight into a pair of eyes hidden among the canopy.

“Where have you two travelled from?” came a voice. Yunobo swallowed, turning to glance at Sidon to see if he should answer or not, but getting no answer.

“I’m from Death Mountain, I don’t know about my friend,” Yunobo explained, hoping they’d miss the lie long enough for Sidon to tell them on his own, “who are you?”

“Do you know anything about the state of the other races?” the same voice asked, ignoring Yunobo’s question.

“Other races? You’re being a little vague,” Yunobo pointed out. Footsteps from deeper in the forest came closer, and Yunobo had to brace himself to avoid calling on the protection again.

“Enough, Nytt. Let’s be welcoming to them, hmm?” Came a much louder voice, coming from the direction of the footsteps. Slowly, a large, owl-like rito appeared from between the trees, calling up to the voice above them. The bows slowly disappeared.

“Fine.”

“Now that you’ve given them a warm welcome, why don’t you help this poor soul into our camp, so we might see what we can do for his wounds?” The owl suggested. With a loud huff, a large, dark brown rito glided down from the trees, followed by three more, armed to the beaks with arrows.

“Are you so sure? They could be dangerous,” Nytt warned.

“Hoo yes, I’m sure they’re going to do all sorts of damage right now,” The owl joked, pointing to the fact that Sidon still hadn’t stood up. “Help them into camp, and be a bit more neighbourly this time.”

Nytt huffed, but followed the orders regardless. There was still quite a glaring problem in trying to get Sidon into the camp however, even with the four rito warriors trying to help him up, they wouldn’t be able to keep him standing, and Sidon didn’t seem particularly able to support himself either. When Yunobo offered a hand, however, Sidon refused.

“Yeah, I wouldn’t want to risk it either,” Nytt muttered to one of the fellow warriors, before turning to Yunobo “why don’t you run ahead, go see our healers and tell them we’ve got an injured Zora. We’ll handle this.”

Guilt twisted up Yunobo’s tongue, so all he could do was nod and follow the old owl deeper into the forest. The fog quickly settled in again, hiding Sidon from sight, so all Yunobo could see was the old owl and trees stood close-by. More Rito could be hiding above his head, weapons ready too, and he’d never know.

“Sorry about your friend, chap, but accidents happen. I’m sure he’ll forgive you when he’s feeling better,” the owl assured him, placing one wing over Yunobo’s shoulder to try and comfort him.

“Um, how did you know what happened? I can’t see my hand in front of my face in here!” Yunobo asked, waving his hand to make the point. It was an exaggeration, really, he could see his hand fine, but anything beyond it was too foggy to make out.

“Ho ho, you don’t get to my age without being able to figure out who’s hurt who and why with just a glance. No one was even trying to hide it this time,” the owl laughed. “I am Kaneli, elder of the Rito. What might we call you?”

“Yunobo, and my friend is Sidon.”

“Hmm? As in, Prince Sidon? Something dire must have happened to bring you both so far from your homes,” Kaneli mused.

“You know Prince Sidon?”

“I know of him, communication between the races in the past 100 years has been sparse, but King Dorephan sent a message to welcome me when I first became elder. We’ve communicated little since then, but he did mention Sidon.” Kaneli explained, looking thoughtful.

A torch appeared in the distance through the fog, and behind it, Yunobo could see more Rito, from a wide variety of ages, busy setting up a camp for the night. Heads turned towards them as they approached, and Yunobo felt all the eyes focused on him. He froze, only pushed on by Kaneli’s wing, still wrapped around his shoulder.

“Fri, we have an injured guest coming, will you be able to help him?” Kaneli asked. A nearby Rito peered at Yunobo for a second.

“Another goron?” She asked.

“No, a Zora. I didn’t get a good look at his wound, but do we have spare supplies?”

There was as many rito here as there were gorons at the stables, Yunobo realised; whole families set about making the forest floor feel more homely, the parents comforting the children while the warriors kept watch, especially of him. The rito seemed to have more injured than the gorons did, some sported minor burns and went about helping, while a few were missing such massive chunks of feathers, Yunobo almost felt he should avert his eyes. Fri looked around at the injured, seeming to count up, trying to figure out if they had enough. With a sigh, she gave a resigned shrug.

“We’ll make them stretch.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter ends a little abruptly simply because if I carried on, there would be nowhere else to finish in this chapter. It'd just keep going on and on and on and on and on and on....
> 
> Also I'm attending a virtual symposium on exotic animal medicine you guys want owt?


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maybe prisoners shouldn't make such demands of their captors.

By the second morning on Vah Medoh, Tulin was bored stiff. Revali, or whoever he really was, had only appeared once more to throw some food in for them. Almost literally too. Molli was too scared to play any games with him, so all he could do to pass the time was talk. And boy, was he good at talking. When trying to strike up conversation with Revali didn’t bring him along, Tulin took to chanting a completely toneless, repetitive song while marching around the cell. Molli sat and watched him, giggling a little, but didn’t join in.

After two hours of marching with the chanting getting progressively louder while Molli had progressed beyond giggling to trying to get Tulin to shut up instead, Revali appeared. He did not look happy.

“Would you kindly close your beak for five minutes? I’m trying to have an important conversation up here,” Revali snapped. Tulin rushed to the cell door.

“Will you take us home?” Tulin asked. Revali tutted loudly, staring down his beak at Tulin, who took the signal to start chanting again, this time at a screaming volume. Molli covered her ears with a pained expression, while Revali ran his wing down his face in frustration.

“You are a nightmare. You have absolutely no idea who you’re messing with, or how much trouble you’re causing me. Be QUIET.” Revali yelled. Tulin stopped for a second in shock, before continuing on anyway. “You want to do this the hard way? Fine by me.”

Revali soared down to the cell door as it slid open, catching Tulin with a talon as he tried to run past. Tulin screamed, trying to wriggle free from Revali’s grip as he grabbed Tulin around the waist with one wing, storming over to one of the room’s windows, which opened as he neared.

“If you want to go home, fine. Let me drop you off,” Revali suggested, holding Tulin out of the open window. The cold white mountains of Hebra spread out far beyond them, and Tulin wasn’t quite sure where they were; this wasn’t a view he recognised. But when he peered down, it took him a second to recognise the brown rocks far blow them, surrounded by Lake Totori. For a second, Tulin stared down with silent fear, before the wing holding him let go suddenly, and he fell like a rock, not pulling his wings out quickly enough to stop himself.

Sharp talons once again buried through his feathers, digging into the skin beneath as he screamed out, stopping abruptly but still held out of Vah Medoh, hanging upside down from Revali’s talons. He went to grab hold of the foot with his wings to steady himself, but Revali shook him free, keeping tight hold but not allowing him to keep hold, suspended far above the rocks.

“What are you screaming about? Don’t you want to go home?” Revali asked. Molli was screaming too, banging on the glass wall of the cell as Tulin desperately tried to get a grip on something, anything, that would stop his fall.

“No! I’m not that good at flying yet!” Tulin cried. Dad had been teaching him, but he’d only ever flown down to the ground from the hut at the flight range, and had always been caught by Dad. This was far too far, and he had yet to land in a way that didn’t hurt. “Please don’t let go!”

“What was that, let go? Sounds like an idea.” Revali pulled back his leg, kicking it out again as if to throw Tulin off, but with a scream Tulin managed to cling on, not noticing the talons hadn’t actually let go of him. “Why, don’t you want to go home?”

“Dad!” Tulin screamed in a last ditch effort, hoping he could hear him. “Daddy! Help!”

“No-ones coming, they never do,” Revali hissed. “I’ll let you back on board if you’ll be quiet.”

“Mum! Uncle Harth! Please!”

The tightness of the talons suddenly disappeared, with no warning or chance for Tulin to grab hold of anything. The lower decks of Vah Medoh rapidly fell out of view as Tulin fell like a sack of bricks out of the sky, screaming as he went. Teachings Dad had taught him came back into his mind too rapidly to figure out which one to carry out, whether he should open his wings now, or if he’d heard somewhere else that it would hurt to do that, leaving him flailing wildly through the sky, the rocks below getting nearer and nearer…

The talons once again gripped into his flesh, stopping his fall abruptly with a rush of pain, before the wind that had rushed him towards the ground suddenly lifted him back up again towards Vah Medoh, back through the open window he had been dropped out of, and unceremoniously dumped onto the hard rock flooring of Vah Medoh, eyes streaming too shocked to sob properly.

“Now be quiet, or next time I won’t catch you,” Revali hissed, pushing Tulin back into the cell where Molli quickly wrapped him up in her wings, crying just as hard. Tulin struggled out of her grasp, running to the far side of the cell, as far from Revali and the awful window as he could get, with Molli following close behind. They cowered in the corner together, the feeling of the wind rushing through Tulin’s feathers still lingering like a ghost. Their dad’s would come soon right?

Right?

///////////////////

“Is it done?”

The question was spoken as soon as Revali flew back onto the top deck of Vah Medoh. A pool of malice, shaped like a mirror, showed Lord Ganondorf in the castle, watching Revali intently. His helmet covered his face, the his immense stature unsettling even this far away from him. The emanating malice felt welcoming though; at least the interruption hadn’t angered him. The other champions were represented by doppelgangers formed from the malice, each watching as Revali returned to his position.

“They’ll be quiet. If not, well, I suppose it doesn’t matter if they are alive up here, so long as the warriors believe them to be,” Revali shrugged.

“I can’t believe you’re having so much trouble with a couple of kids,” Daruk joked, “has the Great Revali met his match?”

“Pah, maybe Gorons are born soft, but Rito hatch with a bow in their wings. It’s to be expected, but they can’t best me.”

“Otherwise, is everything going to plan?” Ganondorf asked

“The Goron are off Death Mountain, and separated from the most nutritious food in Hyrule. I didn’t manage to get anyone in their escape, but they won’t be able to fight back as effectively,” Daruk explained.

“And my return was seamless. No-one suspects a thing,” Urbosa explained with a wry smile. “Unfortunately, the previous chief has left Gerudo Town with a guard; if anyone happens to see her, please do let me know.”

“The Rito are displaced entirely, they’ve left some warriors behind but they don’t dare fly close. For now. But with the children on Vah Medoh, they’ll send their best warriors to try and take them back. And when that happens,” Revali indicated pointing the lasers at an oncoming threat, shooting them from the sky, “the Rito will be left completely defenceless.”

Mipha was quiet, avoiding the eyes of the rest of the champions. Revali’s stomach twisted slightly.

“What of you, Princess Mipha? What news of Zora’s Domain?” Ganondorf asked, before adding more gently, “I did not expect such success this quickly, you all have acted above expectations. But if there are any issues, we must know, so that we can deal with them before they become problems.”

Mipha stood up straighter, taking a deep breath, “Zora’s Domain is under my command, as promised, and the people speak of me as Queen. But I misjudged the Captain of the guard, and as a result, Prince Sidon is running free in Hyrule. Until he is disposed, my rule cannot truly begin.”

“And what of the Captain?”

“He is being appropriately punished.”

“Very well. We must all keep a watch for Prince Sidon and ex-chief Riju, show no mercy to either of them, for they are nothing but a spanner in our works. What is your plan to recapture your brother?” Ganondorf asked.

“I still have the displaced king; so long as he is alive, Sidon will endeavour to rescue him. It shall only be a matter of time before he returns to Zora’s Domain willingly,” Mipha explained.

“Why not off him now and lie about it?” Daruk asked. “Would save on the food bill.”

“The inner workings of a court are rarely that easy to manipulate, Daruk,” Ganondorf explained. “If there’s any risk the crown could pass to heartless Prince on the old king’s death, then the king must be kept alive. For now.”

“Muzu feared much the same,” Mipha nodded, “I only wish the rest of the councilmen were as helpful as he has proven himself to be.”

“Be careful of him, Queen Mipha. If he still supports your father, he may very well feed you misinformation to try and sway your hand,” Ganondorf warned, his voice as smooth as butter, “You’re more than welcome to ask for my advice; I always have time for the greatest Queen of Zora’s Domain.”

Mipha beamed, nodding happily, while a twist of jealousy gripped Revali’s heart; if only he could get a compliment like that. But before he could speak up to try and win one, Ganondorf rose from his throne, calling for their silence once more.

“You have all shown exemplary skill thus far, but the battle is far from over. Stay on your guard, and stick to the plan. We will discuss the next stage of the plan once Sidon and Riju are dealt with. Take Riju out discretely; if the Gerudo suspect their old chief was murdered, they’ll suspect Chief Urbosa of doing the deed. It matters little for Sidon, but make sure his body can be taken back to the Domain in a reasonably recognisable state. The people must see that he is dead. That is all.”

With that, the mirror-like malice fell like a blanket of rain onto the back of Vah Medoh, draining back into the centre console alongside the Champion’s doppelgangers, leaving Revali alone once more in the biting morning air. He made his way over to the edge of Vah Medoh, checking over the laser weapons clamped around his wings. The nippy air was chilling the skin at the edges of the weapons. _I should take them off soon, check them over_ , Revali thought, as he peered over the edge of Vah Medoh.

Far beneath him, so far he could only tell what it was he was watching due to having seen them before, were the Rito warriors left behind, watching him back. The stables had been evacuated not long after the Rito left, the Hylian’s within it too scared of being targeted next to stay. _Cowards. So typical of Hylians though, he supposed._

“You’ve been awfully quiet,” Revali said out loud. As predicted, no answer came. “Have I shocked you into silence, or are you just not there?” Still no answer.

One of the warriors took a running leap off towards Lake Totori, the updrafts surrounding the ruins of Rito village lifting them up towards the Divine Beast, and its watching Champion. Revali watched them soar nearer and nearer, before aiming Medoh’s lasers them. “You’re getting too close. A shame you can’t fly faster.”

The first fire was a warning shot, scraping the edges of the warrior’s primary feathers. They cringed, losing a little altitude, but pressed on anyway. Their dedication was worth noting, but completely pointless. Revali aimed three of the laser cannons, each targeted towards the oncoming warriors, who feinted last second, avoiding all three blasts. In another time, Revali may even have been a little impressed, but now he felt nothing but indifference. The warrior drew ever closer, as Revali raised the laser weapon, aiming it at the clueless Rito as Vah Medoh’s cannons locked on target again. The warrior once more managed to dodge two of the blasts, the third clipping the edge of their armor, distracting them for just a split second. All Revali needed.

The laser shot from the weapon tip, striking the warrior full force in the chest, and Revali watched silently as they fell from the sky, struggling to steady their wings to glide to safety, as more warriors went to fly to their aid. No-one would dare get any closer now.

“Perfect as ever, Vah Medoh,” Revali cooed, making his way back towards the central console. “Won’t be long now. You won’t ever have to worry about them again. I promise you that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Microsoft is endeavoring to push me to a breakdown this academic year so like, at this point, if Word decides to delete my file of this fanfic I wouldn't even be surprised. It was a rough night last night dealing with that bull so I'm going to take it out in my writing. Enjoy, I'm not sorry. It'll only get worse from here. (Although next chapter is less whumpy more angst)
> 
> Also I saw someone else do this, but if you're reading this in the future as a completed fic (so like, 10 years from now. How's it going?) this is a pretty good spot for a break. The next few chapters are gonna be long and more exciting with cliff hangers and shit. This one just has Revali talking to Vah Medoh at the end.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prince Sidon of the Zora, Yunobo of the Gorons, Chief Riju of the Gerudo, and the Rito have congregated in Korok forest to try and figure out what the heck is going on. Teba, however, has had quite enough of playing nice.

Once the forest Riju had been dreaming about had come into view, she hadn’t wanted to stop. Even when Buliara suggested staying in the stabled overnight in warm beds, rather than huddled around a campfire once more, Riju had decided that sacrificing a little bit of comfort for the chance to get to the forest more quickly was worth it. But with the sun now rising on a misty morning by the forest, she couldn’t stop yawning and was almost dragging her feet along the road. Buliara didn’t look best pleased by the situation.

“My lady, we really should have stopped at those Stables. There’s nowhere near here to rest, and this forest feels… wrong, somehow.” Buliara warned. But something was driving Riju onwards.

“We have to go in. Whatever it is I am meant to find, it’s in there,” Riju insisted. “Will you come with me?” Truth be told, the forest was discomforting her too, and she really wanted Buliara there. She could cope with just Patricia, possibly, but…

“Of course. Wherever you go, I shall follow,” Buliara assured her, “But be careful. I don’t like the look of this place.”

Riju nodded, taking the lead into the forest. The fog seemed to thicken the second they stepped between the trees, Buliara keeping close behind Riju, while Patricia took the lead up front. It was strangely quiet in here, like the fog was swallowing all sound. The forest was as different to the desert as Riju could have imagined; the fog hung around with a cold, damp feeling, the trees were a vibrant green, hiding the sun from view. It had very quickly gotten dark, and the forboding feeling Riju had before was quickly becoming overwhelming.

“Halt!” Came a yell from the leaves above them. Riju gasped, stepping backwards as she spotted bows poking out from between the branches. But she was quickly grabbed, pulled backwards, and a great sword thrusted towards the leaves.

“Come down here and face me, voe! Who dares to threaten Lady Riju?” Buliara demanded. The surprise seemed to cause a small panic in the leaves, and a Rito vai fell out, hitting the ground with a thud. Buliara was over her in a second, sword pointed at her neck. “Well? Speak, vai.”

“Put your sword away, we don’t want any trouble,” Came the voe’s voice again, followed by the large, dark brown rito who it came from, exiting the trees too. His bow was held aloft in his hands, held up in surrender. Buliara watched him carefully, but didn’t lower her sword.

“What are Rito doing here? I thought you lived further West,” Riju asked.

“I could ask the same of you,” the voe huffed, “I thought you Gerudo stuck to the desert?”

“Watch your tongue, you speak to Lady Riju of the Gerudo, show some manners,” Buliara demanded. The Rito voe looked uncomfortable.

“Look, our elder is desperate to know what’s going on in Hyrule, if you have information about Lady Urbosa, we’ll guide you deeper into this forest. It’s too easy to get lost in here.”

“What do you mean, ‘if you have information about Lady Urbosa’?” Riju asked, eyes narrowing. How would a rito voe know about that? Best to pretend she knew nothing. “Lady Urbosa has been dead for one hundred years.”

“Master Revali returned, as apparently has Daruk of the Gorons. Kaneli reckons the Gerudo and Zora champions must have returned too, but we haven’t received news yet,” the voe explained. Riju had suspected the other champions had returned too, but what it meant was still beyond her. Moreover, what were so many rito doing this far away from their home?

“Very well, we shall talk to your elder. Buliara, please lower your sword,” Riju instructed. Buliara did so reluctantly, stepping closer to the Rito warrior, sword still in hand. She towered over him, glaring down at him. Riju could barely stifle a giggle as the voe shivered in fright.

“Lead the way.”

He did so, with the other rito staying behind to keep watch. Riju kept glancing back at them, but they didn’t follow. Very soon, the fog had hidden them entirely from sight, leaving just the three of them seemingly wandering into the forest alone. Buliara seemed to realise it too.

“How much further is the elder?”

“Not long now, we put our camp as deep into the forest as we could without losing track of the entrance. We wouldn’t want to get lost in here,” the rito explained. “Look, here we are.”

The fog still blotted out the sunlight, but small braziers dotted around kept it out of the camp. Rito of all manner of ages were waking up and setting about morning duties, cleaning, cooking. A group of four warriors seemed to be preparing the set out on watch, nodding towards the rito voe that lead them as they passed. A large, owl-like rito saw them approaching, his eyebrows shooting up.

“Hoo? We do seem to be getting a lot of visitors today,” the owl mused, rubbing at his chin feathers.

“They wanted to talk to you about the Gerudo champion,” the voe explained.

“Very well. The morning watch will take over now, Nytt. Go get some sleep,” the owl instructed, before turning to Riju and Buliara. “Welcome to our camp. It’s not quite Rito village, but we’re making the best of our situation. I am Kaneli, the elder. Who might you be?”

“I am Lady Riju of the Gerudo, and this is Buliara, my guard. Why are there so many Rito here?” Riju asked.

“A pleasure to finally meet you, Chief Riju. I was just about to discuss the matter with our other guests, would you care to join us?” Kaneli waved one wing towards the centre of the camp. Riju couldn’t help but feel a little awkward at being addressed as chief.

“Technically, I’m not ‘chief’ anymore,” she admitted, “but yes, let’s.” This was all very strange, and Riju was having trouble figuring out what was going on here. Hopefully it would soon be cleared up.

Towards the centre of camp was a handful of injured Rito, sporting burns that looked a few days old, but seemingly healing well. They looked more annoyed by the fact they were injured than the injury itself, as if the injury was a personal insult to them. Standing out from the crowd however, was a massive, bright red Zora, sat next to a Goron. _These must be the other guests_ , Riju thought.

“Good morning, Prince Sidon. You seem a little chipper now,” Kaneli greeted as he approached. The zora looked up, smiling back. It was only as Riju got closer that she saw the electrical burns spread across his torso, centring from a horrible wound on his side. She couldn’t help cringing from the sight of it.

“It feels much better now, thank you Kaneli. I am very sorry for being a hassle to you.”

“Nonsense, we didn’t exactly give you a choice in being helped, so we can’t hold it against you,” the owl laughed, beckoning Riju to come closer. “This is Chief Riju, of the Gerudo. Chief Riju, this is Yunobo, a Goron youth, and Prince Sidon of the Zora.”

“A pleasure to meet you, Chief Riju,” Sidon greeted with a short bow from where he sat, with Yunobo joining in, but having had a lot less practiced than Sidon it looked clumsy. Riju couldn’t help the blush raising to her face.

“Just Riju is fine, I told you Kaneli, I’m not chief anymore.”

“Very well. Come, sit. The floor is a little cold but its not wet, and that’s the best we can hope for at the moment,” Kaneli lowered himself to the floor, patting for Riju to join him. It was only then that Riju noticed how big the rest of them were, towering over her like the Gerudo back home did. Man could she not be the tallest person for once? “Shall I start?”

The talking went on for hours; Kaneli relayed the rito’s tale of how Master Revali, once a fierce protector of Rito Village, had destroyed the settlement, shooting any warrior who dared get close. When Kaneli mentioned that Revali had taken two children captive, Riju couldn’t hold back her gasp, and she didn’t miss one of the nearby injured warriors standing up and walking away, so as to not hear it. The look on his face made her believe it might have been one of the children’s father’s, and her heart ached for him. Yunobo followed up with how Daruk returned, laughing and as joyful as when he’d left, only to attack in the night when they’re guard was down from having celebrated too hard. Despite their best efforts, the Gorons had been forced to flee their home, but unlike the Rito chose to stay close to the mountain. Yunobo seemed frustrated by the story, still shaking in fear but voice dripping with sadness over not stopping his ancestor from displacing them all.

Sidon seemed reluctant to tell his tale, so Riju spoke next of how Urbosa had returned and, ever so politely, and with the support of the Gerudo, taken Riju’s place as chief. She’d been so kind, and polite, but with Yunobo’s tale of Daruk, Riju feared what she had left her people to face. Kaneli had been quick to reassure Riju that seeking out help had been the right thing to do, and Riju hadn’t wanted to correct him, that she wasn’t seeking help, just the forest, for reasons she couldn’t even explain. Sidon still seemed hesitant to tell of the Zora, how their champion Mipha came back and took the entire Domain captive, and Riju couldn’t figure out why until Kaneli asked:

“Princess Mipha, wasn’t it? She took your father captive, and his place on the throne?” Kaneli asked. The pieces slowly fell into place in Riju’s mind. Prince Sidon, Princess Mipha, zora lived an awfully long time…

“Yes. I… I am afraid it is my fault. If I hadn’t acted so rash, father wouldn’t have…” Sidon bit his lip. “I don’t understand why she would do this, it’s not like my sister at all.”

Yunobo gasped at the same time as Riju, which seemed to upset Sidon, as he closed his mouth and turned his face away from Kaneli. The owl sighed, rubbing the feathers on his chin.

“It’s quite the question, isn’t it? If we could just figure out why our champions want us to suffer, maybe we could convince them to stop, hmm?”

“Mipha mentioned a Lord Ganondorf, I think father recognised the name, but I didn’t get a chance to ask,” Sidon explained. At hearing the name, Kaneli hissed through his beak, causing the others to jump.

“You’re certain she said Ganondorf?” Kaneli asked. Sidon nodded, which made Kaneli’s face screw up in worry. “It’s as I feared then. Ganondorf is an ancient name, from many years ago. When Ganon took human form, he was named Ganondorf. If our champions answer to him, then…”

“But why? Daruk meant to protect us from Ganon, not fight for him! Why would the champions fight for him?” Yunobo asked.

“I don’t-“ Kaneli started, only to be cut off by a large, white Rito voe throwing himself into the middle of the conversation, feathers bristled, completely ignoring everyone but Kaneli.

“As you feared? You knew Revali was answering to Ganon? What the hell Kaneli?!” He demanded. Yunobo curled up in fright while Riju inched away. The rito looked ready to kill. “You want me to leave Tulin up there with a monster like that?!”

“Teba, this is not the time-“ Kaneli started, but Teba just bristled up more, stepping closer to Kaneli. The near by Rito had stopped their work and were watching closely now, some out of curiosity, some out of shock.

“Not the time? Not the time? When is the time, when Revali kills my son or after? Sorry, let me just put my son’s rescue on hold so you can hold polite conversation with a this bunch of-“ Teba held his tongue, glaring among Riju, Yunobo and Sidon. “You made me leave, you won’t let me go back. And now you know Ganon is behind all of this, you still want me to leave my son up on Vah Medoh?”

A bright pink rito vai rushed over to try and pull Teba away, but he was having none of it. Kaneli had his eyes closed, the pain on his face visible to all, but the anger masking fear on Teba’s was worse. Riju couldn’t tell if he was about to cry or punch Kaneli. Possibly both.

“You can’t go up there without a plan, Teba. The more we know, the more likely you are to rescue your son. Please, you need to calm down and think this through-“

“I’ve done my thinking! And my plan is to fly up there and kill Revali. I won’t wait here any longer. Screw. You. Kaneli.” Teba hissed, breaking free of the pink vai and running off into the woods while Kaneli yelled after him.

Buliara, having heard the commotion, was rushing over too, but a mad thought had gripped Riju’s mind, and before she knew what she was doing, she was chasing after Teba, his white plumage quickly disappearing into the fog ahead of her. Buliara’s shouts behind her were quickly drowned out by the fog, but Riju didn’t have a chancer to stop, focused on Teba’s tail feathers constantly out of reach in the fog in front of her.

But Teba was faster than her, and quickly disappeared into the fog, leaving Riju alone but for the trees. She stopped to catch her breathe, only then thinking to turn around again, and realise she’d completely lost sight of the camp. No footsteps followed her either; she was alone in the woods.

She realised too late that turning around in the fog had been a bad idea; now she wasn’t sure of where Teba had gone, or the way back to the camp. All that she could see was nearby trees, anything beyond that was lost into the haze. It was so quiet, with only the rustle of the leaves to listen to, and Riju had to take a deep breath to keep a level head, walking forwards in the direction she had been heading, or at least the direction she thought it might be.

She wasn’t alone in the fog for long, as soon a lit brazier ahead cleared some of the fog away, enough that she could see Teba stood beside it, looking as lost as she felt. He turned to face her as she stepped through the leaves, his eyes narrowing.

“Why are you following me? I’m not going back, and you can tell Kaneli that I won’t return until I have Tulin,” Teba warned.

“Alright, as soon as I my way, I’ll do that,” Riju agreed, “Do you know which way back to the camp?”

Teba visibly swallowed, “I’m not heading that way, I’m just trying to get out of the forest. I thought it was this way, but…”

Loud footsteps suddenly came crashing from behind Riju, as she turned to face Sidon. He seemed slightly surprised. “Ah, there you are. I thought I should probably follow you, as your friend was stopped by the warriors back there. Where is it you were headed in such a rush?”

“I just followed Teba,” Riju admitted.

“And I’m trying to get out of here, if you don’t mind,” Teba turned tail, ready to head deeper into the fog, only to stop as Yunobo crashed into the clearing too. If looks could kill, Teba would have slaughtered Yunobo by now.

“Sorry, I was just worried about Sidon, you know…” Yunobo trailled off, shrinking under Teba’s glare. Without a word, Teba turned again, walking off deeper into the fog.

“Wait a moment!” Sidon called after him, “I don’t think it’s safe to go wandering off in these woods.”

“If I head in one direction, I’ll get out. I don’t need more of a plan than that,” Teba snarled.

“I don’t mean to insult your sense of direction, but this is Korok Forest; the Koroks are tricky folk, and they might try to get you lost in here,” Sidon explained. “You really should have a plan.”

“Like a bread crumb trail?” Yunobo asked.

“Like the fire,” Riju stated, grabbing a nearby stick and pushing it into the brazier, before lifting the stick up for them to see. “The embers will float in the wind, so we’ll know we’re going in the same direction.”

“Will that work?” Yunobo asked, “can’t the wind change direction?”

“It’s better than standing around here,” Teba shrugged, holding out a hand to take the burning stick, which Riju handed over. “You three do as you please, I’m heading this way.” He held the fire up in front of him, and followed the direction that the embers pointed towards. Riju and Yunobo turned to Sidon, who sighed.

“We might as well stick together, safety in numbers and all that. If we can find the edge of the forest, we can follow it around to the entrance again and rejoin the Rito there.”

Sidon waved Yunobo to follow after Teba, with Riju in walking between him and Sidon. From this distance Riju could barely even see Teba in the fog, although that might have been from his plumage as much as it was the density. Yunobo seemed jumpy, shrieking at each strange sound and constantly stopping to look into the fog where he thought he’d heard something.

“Are-are Koroks friendly?” Yunobo asked, his hands shaking.

“I believe they are, from the tales Father would tell me. They’re just mischievous, is all,” Sidon reassured him, which seemed to calm Yunobo down some.

“Don’t worry, I won’t let them come between us and escaping this forest,” Teba announced, raising his bow above his head, with only the bare outline of the wooden frame visible to Riju.

“I’m not sure threatening the Koroks will do any of us any good,” Sidon warned.

“I’m done waiting around. My wife is safe, and now I’m going to save my son, no matter what. If these ‘Koroks’ try and stop me, well, it’s their own fault.”

“Well, I am sure your son will be safe. I mean, what would your champion gain from hurting him?” Sidon asked, his voice too bright for the topic.

“How did you get injured?” Teba asked harshly. Riju glanced back at Sidon, who wasn’t looking back. “Cause I’d bet you’d’ve thought the same about your champion too.”

Yunobo had turned around to look back at Sidon too, but Sidon didn’t meet anyone’s eyes. Yunobo then glanced down at Riju with a look of sad surprise; clearly he hadn’t considered that Mipha had been the one to injure Sidon either. The flame embers suddenly, and quite abruptly, changed the direction they were floating off too. Teba paused and stared at it a moment, before following the new direction with a grumble. The rest continued to follow.

“Can’t you just fly up above the fog?” Riju asked, “I mean, you’re a Rito, aren’t you?”

“I’m the best flier in Rito Village, and don’t you forget it,” Teba stated, sounding more like a warning than a brag, “but even I can’t take off from standing. We need either an updraft or some distance to fall in order to get an good upbeat in. Relatively simple around Lake Totori, but we’re practically grounded here.”

“Couldn’t you climb a tree and fall from that?” Riju asked again.

“Not high enough. Trust me, if I could do it I would have done it already,” Teba explained. The branch was starting to burn too far down for comfort, so Yunobo grabbed a nearby branch and held it out to Teba, who took it and lit it from the first branch.

They carried on in silence for a while, following the glowing embers as it guided them through the fog. After a while Teba spoke up again.

“I didn’t mean- look, I’m sorry, your highness. I shouldn’t have said that. It was a low blow, and I didn’t even know if it was true,” he apologised.

“No, it’s fine. I know losing your son must be hard, I shouldn’t have tried to downplay it,” Sidon apologised back, but when Riju glanced back he still wasn’t look up at them. “You were right, anyway. And I can’t even try to explain why Mipha hurt me, but I have faith your son will return home safe. If that means anything.”

“He’ll return safe, and Revali will return to Ganondorf dead. It’s that simple,” Teba agreed with a tone of finality.

“Is the fog clearing?” Yunobo asked. Riju had been to busy focusing on Teba and Sidon’s conversation to realise it, but Teba had been sharpening, as if the fog wasn’t quite as thick as it had been before.

“We must be getting close to the edge now. Come on,” Teba picked up the pace, as the rest followed, the fog clearing up to a bright, sunny late morning. But there was no edge to the forest; once the fog was gone, they were still surrounded by trees, a dense overgrowth mottling the light, the vibrant green of the forest taking Riju’s breath away. It was so quiet but for the rustling leaves, until Teba swore loudly, getting a quick warning from Sidon for swearing in front of Riju.

“Sorry. I thought we were out. What’s this?” Teba asked, still holding the burning branch.

“Maybe we’re at the edge, just still in the forest a bit?” Yunobo offered.

“This doesn’t look like an edge to me,” Teba grumbled, but continued to lead the way ahead, still following the embers that lead them onwards. Sidon followed after, with Riju and Yunobo staying closer this time.

Trees and bushes winded the path, but there was something slightly unnatural to the forest now. Not in the supernatural sense, but as if people had been leaving here, living among the leaves. Recently too, for the plants had yet to start reclaiming the paths. But there was no signs of a living creature around here; they hadn’t even spotted any wildlife for a long time. Yunobo seemed just as impressed as Riju felt, but he stayed close behind Sidon. Riju meanwhile couldn’t help the urge to touch one of the nearby bushes, only for it to shudder as she did. She jumped backwards in shock, but nothing came out. It was simply a shuddering bush.

“What’s that?” Teba asked, stopping suddenly. Riju turned away from the bush and rushed to catch up, only to see Teba staring at a stone dias laid in the middle of a clearing of the forest, watched over by a simply giant tree. Weeds grew up among the cracks of the old, weathered stone. And, jutting out from the centre, was a sword.

“Could it be?” Sidon asked, tentatively stepping closer, “I think I’ve seen this sword before, The Sword That Seals The Darkness! I thought it was lost.”

“Not lost, merely sleeping.”

The voice echoed around the clearing, causing Sidon to jump backwards from the sword in shock. Yunobo brought his hands up to protect himself, a magical shield sparking out from his body as Riju side stepped away from him in shock. Teba rushed forward, bow drawn ready for the unseen threat.

“Who’s there? Come out now,” he demanded, but no-one stepped out. Riju cautiously approached them, keeping watch, but seeing nothing. Only the massive, weathered old tree still watching over the sword, an opening near its roots looking like the perfect hiding place, but nothing came out. The bark was shaped strangely, like two big, bushy eyebrows and a massive mouth.

“That tree looks like it has a face!” She pointed out in amusement. “Maybe it’s the one that spoke?”

“Don’t be daft-“ Teba scolded, only to be interrupted.

“Put the bow away, and we shall speak,” The voice called out. Teba gripped the bow tighter, but Riju was certain the bark on the tree had moved just now. Had it really been the tree?

“Maybe we should do as it says, Teba. He didn’t ask for you to drop it, just lower your bow,” Sidon instructed. Teba hold the string tight for a moment longer, before sighing and slowly letting it go slack, pointing the arrow towards the floor instead, still held in his wings ready at a moments notice.

The upper branches on the massive tree shook themselves despite the lack of wind, and the eyebrow-like bark wiggled as the mouth opened in a yawn. Yunobo shrieked at the sight, while Riju watched, slack jawed beside a similarly reacting Sidon. Teba seemed too shocked to raise his bow again.

“That’s better,” the tree yawned loudly, as if just waking up from a nap. “Now, where were we?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fucking beast of a chapter is like 12 word document pages long. 4000 words. Next week's chapter might be a little late. I hope you can understand why, but also like, the next 2 chapters are ALSO gonna be long. Fic lords help me.


End file.
